03/04/2006
Rasmussen warns Commission not to mess with services compromise
3 April 2006
The Party of European Socialists today warned the European Commission not to change the compromise on the Services Directive reached by the European Parliament and strongly supported by the Council of Ministers.
"I fear McCreevy and his friends in the Commission will try to loosen some of the protection for consumers and essential public services contained in the compromise on the Services Directive achieved by the European Parliament" said Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, President of the Party of European Socialists. "If the Commission really wants to open up the market in services it must not mess with the compromise. But from what I hear, the temptation may prove too strong despite the public commitment given by the Commission to respect the compromise."
"The European Commission should heed the message of the European Council from the last summit instead of yielding to pressure from the many big service companies."
The PES believes that the Commission is considering to limit the range of "services of general interest" excluded from the Directive, and to delete a paragraph voted by the Parliament guaranteeing the consumer protection under national consumer legislation - which was a major point for the PES Group in the European Parliament. The PES fears that there could also be a shift towards weakening labour laws.
"There will be trouble if the Commission make the changes they have been talking about" added Poul Nyrup Rasmussen. "The Party of European Socialists will not tolerate silly games from the European Commission."
For more information
Julian Scola, Press Officer
Party of European Socialists
gsm 0486 117 394
julian.scola@pes.org
