European Economic and Social Committee
SOC/520
Principles for effective
and reliable welfare
provision systems
Brussels, 7 September 2015
Information Memo
510th Plenary session
Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on Principles for effective and reliable
welfare provision systems (own-initiative opinion)
OPINION: EESC-2015-01011-00-00-AS-TRA
1.
Procedure
Legal basis:
Rule 29(2) of the Rules of Procedure
Plenary Assembly decision:
21-22 January 2015
Section responsible:
Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship
Section president:
Maureen O'Neill (UK-III)
Organisation of section work:
18 February 2015
Study Group on
Principles for effective and
reliable welfare provision
systems
President:
Mr Trindade (PT-II)
Rapporteur:
Mr Schlüter (DE-III)
Members:
Mr/Ms
Abildgaard (DK-III)
Almeida Freire (PT-I)
Andersen (DK-I)
Balon (PL-III)
Bischoff (DE-II)
Cabra de Luna (ES-III)
Greif (AT-II)
Komorowski (PL-I)
Manolov (BG-II)
Yeandle (UK-I)
OPINION ADOPTED by 60 votes to 11 with 5 abstentions on 1 September 2015.
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Rue Belliard/Belliardstraat 99 — 1040 Bruxelles/Brussel — BELGIQUE/BELGIË
Tel. +32 25469011 — Fax +32 25134893 — Internet: http://www.eesc.europa.eu
EN
Experts
Joss Steinke (for the rapporteur)
Jean Lapeyre (for Group II)
2.
Background
The purpose of this own-initiative opinion is to set out principles for public responsibility for social
benefit systems in Europe.
3.
Gist of the opinion
The EESC sees the need to safeguard basic welfare provision by having common rules at EU level.
Social policy principles could provide a substantive basis for the Commission's recommendations,
especially in the context of the European Semester, the Europe 2020 strategy, the open method of
coordination and application of the social impact assessment under Article 9 TFEU. Such principles
should also provide the substantive basis for a binding social protection floor and for the action and
governance of the EU institutions themselves.
The EESC proposes the following principles for welfare provision systems:
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Principle of a social protection floor: guarantee of basic welfare provision, including subsidiary
subsistence protection/minimum income for people without an adequate income;
Principle of need: development and provision of modern, professional social and healthcare
services for different problem situations;
Principle of a precise definition of aims: development of clear social policy goals for welfare
provision;
Principle of accessibility: ensuring that welfare provision, and above all social services, are
affordable and accessible on a non-discriminatory basis wherever and whenever they are needed,
Principle of proportionality: services and benefits should be necessary and appropriate in their
form and extent;
Principle of solidarity: funding of welfare provision should essentially be supported by solidaritybased social insurance systems and fair, solidarity-based tax systems;
Principle of personal responsibility: job-seekers and those finding it difficult to enter the labour
market should be supported through social services and incentive systems enabling them to
subsist through their own efforts;
Principle of participation: all services and benefits – alone or in combination – should help people
to play their part in society;
Principle of structure: rational configuration of the legal and financial relationship between users,
welfare providers (public or independent, depending on the system), welfare authorities and social
insurance bodies;
Principle of the user's right to decide: users are not passive recipients, but partners in assistance
and citizens with entitlements;
Principle of legal certainty: services and benefits should be legally guaranteed, for instance under
social legislation or similar democratic legal instruments of the Member States;
Principle of public interest: in particular, third-sector and participatory forms of undertaking and
organisation should enjoy appropriate financial and legal conditions;
Principle of transparency: the use of public funds by welfare providers and public administrations
should be transparent;
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Principle of a joined-up approach: people's everyday situations, changing life paths, new family
constellations, ageing and immigration call for integrated and joined-up services;
Principle of a level playing-field: users, welfare authorities and welfare providers should have
legally enshrined and enforceable rights and duties;
Principle of quality: social services should be backed up by quality assurance measures;
Principle of coordination: management of cross-border issues relating to social security and social
protection should be improved.
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