Press Release - Union of European Federalists

We understand that Covid-19 is a common threat that may hurt one country sooner than another, but will eventually hurt us all, and can impact our daily life and economy almost like a war.

We consider that this current challenge, the most difficult one Europe and the world are facing since 1945, comes just a few weeks before the 70th Anniversary of the Schuman Declaration; like then, our ambition should be commensurate to the scale of the public health and economic crisis we are facing;

We warn of the further negative effects that un-coordinated national responses would have onEuropeans’ health and on the EU’s economy.

We recall that the interdependence between EU societies requires a single European answer with strict containment measures of the pandemics, and an EU-wide plan to support the Member States’efforts in the short term as well as to relaunch its economic growth afterwards.

We regret that the EU is currently ill equipped to face this challenge, with little competences and powers to ensure an efficient answer to the sanitary crisis.

We welcome the timely decision by the Commission to provide 37 billion euro and financial flexibility to cope with this threat. Maybe it is the most it can do, but it is not enough.

We welcome the decisions of the European Central Bank of 12 and 18th March, particularly as it regards the combined 850 billion euro package of purchases of government and corporate bonds;

We call on the European Commission and Parliament to propose, and on the national governments to adopt (starting with the extraordinary European Council on March 26th) the following urgent measures:

HEALTH UNION

Decide to enhance the EU's coordination and support role in matters of public health, particularly in terms of ability to fight against pandemics – possibly making public health a shared EU competence, eventually through a revision of the Treaties – and to exploit art. 168 TFEU, which already foresees (art. 168§5 TFEU) that certain matters of public health (such as the fight against and prevention of great scourges, which are transnational in nature) be decided upon through the ordinary legislative procedure, and art. 222 TFEU, which foresees for the principle of mutual assistance in case of natural or man-made disaster, to the full.
Entrust the Commission with all necessary powers to effectively coordinate the response to the pandemic, including common European rules to limit and overcome the crisis, organize and manage the most effective use of the necessary pharmaceutical resources and health equipment, and any decision relating to the restriction of the free movement of persons within the European Union, while safeguarding the possibility of articulating specific measures for the various countries on the basis of the different situations.
Extend the aims of the European Stability Mechanism in order to allow its use without conditionality to finance the immediate strengthening of European and national health systems to deal with the pandemic, which is a threat to public health and also to the economic and financial stability of the EU.
Creation of European Health Bonds, issued by the Commission specifically targeting the member states’ efforts in addressing the health emergency, using the ESM capital as a guarantee.

ECONOMIC RECOVERY

Issue by the Union of an EU RECOVERY BOND in the form of a mutualized European Safe Asset managed by the Commission and guaranteed by the EU budget, that could be used initially to finance a pan-European plan for the promotion of economic recovery and social cohesion in the face of the pandemic, as well as to finance the Green Deal, which involves huge investments to radically transform European society and production.
Rapidly adopt the Multiannual Financial Framework, by increasing the EU budget to at least 1.3% of European GDP, as requested by the European Parliament, based on the current structure of budget financing; and with the forecast to reach 2% with new own resources, in order to ensure the provision of crucial European public goods, such as the fight against the pandemic, economic recovery and social cohesion, the Green Deal, management of migration flows and security and defense.
Establish genuine, new own resources - such as taxes (and tariffs) on carbon emissions at the EU border and the revenue from the EU Emission Trading Scheme and its extension, taxes on the income of companies in the digital economy, taxes on speculative financial transactions, profits of the ECB - accrue directly to the European budget, as they are transnational in nature and cannot readily be assigned to any Member State; that, alternatively, these taxes accrue to the budgetary instrument of the euro area, if the decision could be adopted only at euro area level, on the basis of the provisions of art. 136 TFEU.
Proceed without delay to the completion of the Economic and Monetary Union, starting from the proposals contained in the Reports of the 4 Presidents of 2012 and the 5 Presidents of 2015; in the Commission Blueprint of 2011, in the various Commission Communications of 6/12/2017 and 15/1/2019; in the Resolutions of the European Parliament on improving the functioning of the European Union by exploiting the potential of the Lisbon Treaty of 16/2/2017, on the Possible evolution and adaptation of the current institutional structure of the European Union of 16/2/2017, Budgetary capacity of the Eurozone of 16/2/2017, on the State of the debate on the future of Europe of 13/2/2019, particularly as it regards the common European Deposit Insurance and the Euro area budget.
Consider further actions by the ECB, including direct monetary transfers to Euro area households.
Approve the European Unemployment Insurance Scheme.

INSTITUTIONAL

Approve through the general passerelle clause (art. 48 §7 TEU) the transition of fiscal and tax issues to the ordinary legislative procedure, as already proposed also by the European Commission in 2019, with the aim of creating new taxes harmonized at EU level;
Agree on a Joint Inter-Institutional Declaration by 9 May for the launching of the Conference on the Future of Europe, in order to pave the way for a European Convention to draw up a new Constitutional Pact between European citizens and the Member States for a stronger and more cohesive political union, in the light of the proposals expressed and recalled here, to ensure full democratic accountability.

Brussels, Wednesday 25 March 2020

PRESS RELEASE: here

EDITOR’S NOTE:

The Union of European Federalists (UEF) is a pan-European, non-governmental political organisation dedicated to the promotion of European political unity. For more than 70 years UEF has been a leading voice in the promotion of European unity and an early campaigner for key milestones in the development of the European Communities and then the European Union. With 25 national sections and over 400 local groups across Europe, UEF promotes a federal Europe among citizens and political representatives at all levels of government.

PRESS CONTACT
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

In a joint statement issued today (Wednesday 25 March), the Spinelli Group and the Union of European Federalists (UEF) urge the European Council to take exceptional action in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Spinelli Group and the European Federalists call on EU Institutions and national governments to take the leap towards the creation of EU Recovery Bonds backed by the EU budget and Europe-wide taxes to finance a strong answer able to address the pandemic and its financial impact on the EU’s economy proactively. It urges for the creation of a European Health Union, that would give the necessary powers to the EU to ensure coordination of emergency measures to address health crises in the future.
ANDREW DUFF, President of the Spinelli Group, said: “Yesterday’s lacklustre Eurogroup passed the buck to the heads of government. The European Council tomorrow must shoulder its constitutional responsibility to secure the cohesion of the EU as a whole, and in particular take decisive action to consolidate the euro. Dealing with the pandemic triggers an enormous increase in public expenditure which will exacerbate the structural imbalance between richer and poorer member states. The EU has for years evaded the issuance of a mutualised safe asset in the form of eurobonds. So the eurozone has survived courtesy of the monetary policy of the European Central Bank but without the support of a common fiscal policy. The coronavirus crisis is time to rectify this flaw in economic and monetary union. The plague risks the lives of all EU citizens equally, and the social and economic impact will be much worse than the asymmetric shock of the financial crash in 2008. The European Council must give practical expression to the theoretical injunction for solidarity between its states and citizens. This is the time for European leaders to push forward the politics of the Union in the federal direction.” Duff added: “Bleating about ‘moral hazard’ was yesterday’s response to the last crisis. Today Europe expects a decisive demonstration of generosity and mutual concern from its leaders, without which the values and principles of our Union are fraudulent.”
"We can't yet measure the impact of COVID-19 on the European economy, but it will certainly be very important," says SANDRO GOZI, Member of the European Parliament and President of the UEF. "We need to prepare now for the worst-case scenario and put in place without delay a strong and bold response to revive the economies of EU countries. Nothing will be the same after containment. We will be entering a new world, we will have to build new Europe. The suspension of the tax rules and the intervention of the ECB will not be enough. The Eurogroup's decision to provide limited and conditioned credits through the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) to the most affected states will only cover immediate needs to keep our hospitals afloat. If we don't start issuing European Recovery Bonds immediately, guaranteed by the EU budget, Europe will face an unprecedented financial, social and political crisis. I therefore congratulate President Emmanuel Macron and other national leaders for the proposals made this morning to the Presidents of the Commission and the European Council," concludes Mr Gozi.

The full text of the statement with the proposals of the Spinelli Group and the European Federalists on a European response to the COVID19 crisis can be found below

PRESS CONTACT:
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu

The Union of European Federalists (UEF) warmly congratulates its President, Sandro Gozi, on his election as a Member of the European Parliament in the May 2019 European elections.

Sandro Gozi, elected President of the UEF in 2018, has long been a tireless advocate for a more united, democratic, and federal Europe. His election to the European Parliament is not only a personal achievement but also a significant recognition of the values and goals that the UEF promotes.

As an MEP, Sandro Gozi brings to the European Parliament a deep commitment to European integration and a clear vision for a stronger Union capable of delivering on the expectations of its citizens. His new role will provide a powerful platform to advance the federalist agenda and ensure that the voice of committed pro-Europeans is heard at the highest level of EU decision-making.

The UEF looks forward to continuing its close collaboration with President Gozi as he takes on this important new responsibility. We are confident that his presence in the European Parliament will strengthen the fight for a sovereign, democratic, and federal Europe.

Congratulations, Sandro!

“We are pleased to see the European Parliament take the lead in setting the agenda for the Conference on the Future of Europe, finally opening the door for long-needed Treaty changes with yesterday 's vote. Europe cannot win back the trust of its citizens with another so-called "listening exercise". Instead we need to be courageous and give citizens a real say over the future of the European project. Only a Conference on the Future of Europe that puts all options of deep policy and institutional change on the table can now deliver on citizens' expectations. If Commission President von der Leyen and the European Council are genuine about bringing Europe closer to the people, we invite the Commission and the Council to support the proposals and the level of ambition indicated by the European Parliament", says Sandro Gozi, President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF).

The Union of European Federalists (UEF) and the Young European Federalists (JEF Europe) welcome the resolution adopted yesterday by the European Parliament stating its position regarding the Conference on the Future of Europe. Both UEF and JEF have long advocated for the renewal of our European Union and put forward detailed proposals for the setup of the Conference. The Conference is a golden opportunity for European citizens to walk the path towards an “ever closer union”, as stated in the Treaties. The Conference should not shy away from proposing to expand the Union’s powers and resources and renew its institution to make Europe really sovereign, including through an overhaul of the current Treaties.

The Conference on the Future of Europe must send a clear message to the Union's citizens that their voices will be heard. For this reasons, the European federalists call on the European Commission and the Council, to engage fully and genuinely with this exercise in participatory democracy. The Conference on the Future of Europe shall not be a new dialogue exercise as seen in the past, but a democratic and participative process where citizens have a real say on the Future of the Union. Therefore, in line with the proposal of the Parliament, UEF and JEF welcome an inclusive model that allows citizens to discuss the most pressing policies and institutional reforms, both necessary to rebuild trust in the European project. UEF and JEF are however concerned that there is no credible feedback loop between the decisions ultimately taken by political representatives and the proposals put forward by the citizen agora.

“We couldn’t agree more with the European Parliament: the increase in voter turnout at the 2019 European elections showed that citizens engage with Europe when they are offered the opportunity. For too long we, European citizens, have been sidelined or only cosmetically “consulted” in discussions over the future of European integration. Those times are over. Citizens and civil society are determined to continue pushing for change. The EU’s 60-years-long record of ensuring peace on the continent is at risk if it keeps muddling through the current intergovernmental status quo. The Conference on the Future of Europe is the opportunity to address the concerns of citizens about the future of European democracy and to provide the EU with the tools - institutional and financial - to deliver on its promise”, concludes Leonie Martin, President of JEF Europe.

END

UEF PRESS CONTACT:
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

JEF PRESS CONTACT:
Leonie Martin
leonie.martin@jef.eu
+32.2.5120053

EDITOR’S NOTE:

PRESS CONTACT
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

The Young European Federalists (JEF) Europe is a non-partisan youth NGO active with 13.000 members active in more than 35 countries. The organisation strives towards a federal Europe based on the principles of democracy and subsidiarity as well as respect for human rights. JEF promotes true European Citizenship, and works towards more active participation of young people in democratic life.

PRESS CONTACT:
Leonie Martin
leonie.martin@jef.eu
+32.2.5120053

12 European civil society and other organisations unveil today their set of recommendations for a successful Conference on the Future of Europe. The recommendations emerged as outcome of a series of brainstorming sessions between European civil society organisations and other entities held in autumn 2019.

The proposal for a “European Conference on the Future of Europe” initially put forward by President Emmanuel Macron and then taken up by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, represents a great opportunity to reshape the future of the European Union.

The CSOs’ common key recommendations for the Conference on the Future of Europe are:

An open mandate for the Conference, aimed at developing policy and institutional proposals, as well as proposals for treaty change or a new treaty framework, if considered necessary.
A wide-ranging approach, looking at the scope of competences of the Union, the financing of Union policies and proposals for the democratic and efficient governance of those policies.
A democratic process with wide participation and deep deliberation with individual citizens and civil society organisations from across the Union, as well as accession candidate and eastern neighbourhood countries.
A multi-step approach allowing individual citizens and civil society organisations to give input at different levels of expertise using digital tools and deliberative polling and engagement with institutional decision-makers.
A clear upfront commitment by the institutions of the Union, as well as National Governments to deliver legislative proposals on all policy recommendations and initiate Treaty changes on all proposals adopted by the Conference.

The full common recommendations can be found here. The common recommendations are supported by the following organisations:

European Students' Forum (AEGEE ), European Association for Local Democracy (ALDA ), Assembly of European Regions (AER), Civil Society Europe (CSE), Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the EU (COMECE - Church organisation under Art. 17 TFEU"), European Citizen Action Service (ECAS), European Youth Forum, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, Fondation EURACTIV, garagErasmus Foundation, Young European Federalists (JEF) and the Union of European Federalists (UEF).

END

PRESS CONTACT:
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

European_CSOs_recommendations_for_the_Conference_on_the_Future_of_Europe Download

The CSOs’ common key recommendations for the Conference on the Future of Europe are:

An open mandate for the Conference, aimed at developing policy and institutional proposals, as well as proposals for treaty change or a new treaty framework, if considered necessary.
A wide-ranging approach, looking at the scope of competences of the Union, the financing of Union policies and proposals for the democratic and efficient governance of those policies.
A democratic process with wide participation and deep deliberation with individual citizens and civil society organisations from across the Union, as well as accession candidate and eastern neighborhood countries.
A multi-step approach allowing individual citizens and civil society organisations to give input at different levels of expertise using digital tools and deliberative polling and engagement with institutional decision-makers.
A clear upfront commitment by the institutions of the Union, as well as National Governments to deliver legislative proposals on all policy recommendations and initiate Treaty changes on all proposals adopted by the Conference.

The full common recommendations can be found here. The common recommendations are supported by the following organisations:

European Students' Forum (AEGEE), European Association for Local Democracy (ALDA), Assembly of European Regions (AER), Civil Society Europe (CSE), Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the EU (COMECE - Church organisation under Art. 17 TFEU"), European Citizen Action Service (ECAS), European Youth Forum, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, Foundation EURACTIV, garagErasmus Foundation, Young European Federalists (JEF) and the Union of European Federalists (UEF).

EDITOR’S NOTE:

PRESS CONTACT
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

The European Federalists recommend the European Commission and the European Council to follow the position of the EP and agree a concept, mandate, structure, as well as timing of the Conference as soon as possible in order to enable preparations to start early in the new year.

The Union of European Federalists welcomes the approval of the opinion by the Constitutional Affairs Committee of the European Parliament on the Conference on the Future of Europe laying the ground for an ambitious position and a leading role of the European Parliament in the Conference.

The Conference, initially proposed by the French President Macron and then taken up by new European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her political guidelines for the European Commission 2019-2024. It is expected to be endorsed in the European Council's conclusions at the end of this week and to start working early next year.

The European Federalists welcome AFCO’s support of an open and democratic vision for the Conference on the Future of Europe. This conference will have to consult and engage citizens and institutional representatives at all levels. It should be an exercise of real democratic participation, not just a series of dialogues with citizens with no results - as too many times in the past. The Conference must clearly aim at recommending policy and institutional reforms to make the European Union stronger, more democratic, more efficient, more transparent, and with a greater capacity to act in Europe, as well as in the global scene.

The AFCO opinion includes many proposals from the Federalists, including that the Conference should have an open mandate, that it should be ready to discuss all questions of policies and institutions and that it should be open to consider changes to European treaties, as it will be certainly necessary to meet its goals. Citizens’ participation in the Conference should be ensured through a combination of consultations and direct participation.

Sandro GOZI, President of the Union of European Federalists, commented: “We have a unique opportunity to engage citizens across Europe in a first-time exercise of transnational democracy leading to concrete results on European policies and institutions. Ten years after the Lisbon Treaty, in a completely changed Europe and global order, it is high time to address the questions of Europe’s competencies, resources and institutions with no taboos, including no fear to break unanimity if not all Member States will agree on an ambitious reform roadmap".

The European Federalists look forward to seeing AFCO proposal becoming the official position of the Parliament with a resolution in plenary in January, including also further proposals on the Conference's composition and method of working in preparation by a Working Group set up by the President of the European Parliament.

The European Federalists recommend the European Commission and the European Council to follow the position of the EP and agree on a concept, mandate, structure, as well as timing of the Conference as soon as possible in order to enable preparations to start early in the new year.

END

PRESS CONTACT:
Valentina Presa
valentina.presa@federalists.eu
+32.2.5083030

The Union of European Federalists (UEF) has announced that it has established two new national sections in Greece and North Macedonia, extending the reach of the organisation in the South-East of Europe.

The new organisation in Greece, named Hellenic Union for the Federation of Europe, had its constituent meeting on 8 November 2019 in the Office of the European Parliament in Athens. Over a hundred people from the political, business and academic community were present at the event, that was attended also by Marietta Giannakou (member of the Greek Parliament), Manolis Kefalogiannis (member of the European Parliament), Miltos Kyrkos (former member of the European Parliament) and Dimitrios Tsiodras (Director of the Press Department of the Prime Minister) alongside academics, business executives and students. The Board of the new organisation includes Prof. Ioannis Papageorgiou of the University of Tessaloniki (Chair), Daphne Gogou, European Commission official (Vice Chair), Euclides Sakellarios (Secretary General), Dr Venetia Koussia, Director General of The Council on Competitiveness for Greece (Treasurer), Stathis-Raphael Pasgianos and Stefanos Panakoulias (Board members).

The new organisation in North Macedonia was established on 24 April 2019 and had already a series of events to support the accession process of Republic of North Macedonia into the European Union and promote further European integration. Petar Bogojeski has been elected President and Sasho Lazarovski has been elected Secretary General. The new organisation is organizing a large public event with national political personalities on 14-15 December in Skopje.

Both organisations have been formally accepted as candidate sections by the Federal Committee of the UEF meeting in Rome on 23-24 November.

The Union of European Federalists is a pan-european, non-governmental, non partisan political organisation, dedicated to the promotion of European political unity. Founded in 1946, for more than 70 years UEF has been the leading voice in the promotion of European unity and an early campaigner for all key milestones in the development of the European Communities and then the European Union. Today UEF is engaged in promoting a united, strong, democratic and federal Union. UEF has more than 30,000 members in 25 national branches and 400 local groups, coordinated by the European secretariat based in Brussels.

It also has a youth organisation with 13,000 members (Young European Federalists).

This morning Federalists gathered in front of the European Parliament in Strasbourg to call on the new MEPS to make the Parliament a driving force for a federal Europe.

On 2 July 2019, on the occasion of the first plenary session of the European Parliament, the Union of European Federalists (UEF) and the Young European Federalists (JEF) gathered in front of the European Parliament to welcome the newly elected MEPs and ask their commitment for EU reforms towards a democratic, sovereign and federal Europe.

Sandro GOZI, President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF), declared that “today, simply celebrating the EU and its achievements is not enough. Europe needs change, and the newly elected European Parliament must be the leading force of such change. A reform of the EU treaties towards a stronger, more democratic, more social, more effective, sovereign, federal Europe is needed to bring European solutions to common European challenges such as climate change or migrations and make Europe count in a world more and more dominated by clashes among continental powers”

EDITOR’S NOTE:

The Union of European Federalists (UEF) is a pan-European, non-governmental political organisation dedicated to the promotion of European political unity. For more than 70 years UEF has been a leading voice in the promotion of European unity and an early campaigner for key milestones in the development of the European Communities and then the European Union. With 25 national sections and over 400 local groups across Europe, UEF promotes a federal Europe among citizens and political representatives at all levels of government.

The Young European Federalists (JEF-Europe) is a non-partisan youth NGO with 13.000 members active in more than 30 countries. The organisation strives towards a federal Europe based on the principles of democracy and subsidiarity as well as respect for human rights. JEF promotes true European Citizenship, and works towards more active participation of young people in democratic life.

The Spinelli Group is an initiative launched in September 2010, led by Guy Verhofstadt, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, Sylvie Goulard and Isabelle Durant, followed by Andrew Duff and Jo Leinen as co-chairmen of the MEP-Spinelli Group. The aim of the Spinelli Group is to become a network of citizens, politicians, academics and writers who are convinced it is time for Europe to move forward.

PRESS CONTACT:
Valentina Presa
+32 (0) 2 508 3030
news@federalists.eu