Living and working in the information society: people first. Green Paper

The committee adopted a draft report by Mr Wim van VELZEN (PPE, NL) on the Commission's green paper entitled "Living and working in the information society". While taking the view that the green paper concentrated on work, jobs and the competitiveness of the economy and placed the human dimension of the information society in second place, the committee considered that convergence criteria and the stability pact made it particularly difficult to achieve a social equilibrium. It therefore called on the Commission and the Member States to draw up a framework for a reduction of working time and a better distribution of work and more scope for training. The Commission was also called on to submit a proposal on teleworking and associated problems concerning social security, health and safety, privacy and taxation. It was also called on to intensify its efforts to draw up a European fiscal policy which shifted the tax burden to energy and raw materials and to develop new forms of taxation in the light of the global information society. The Committee on Social Affairs and Employment suggested the launching of a computer literacy campaign in which young people familiar with computers pass on their knowledge to the rest of the population, in particular young unemployed persons, immigrants, housewives and the elderly. The Commission and the Member States should consider the concept of a diploma with "maintenance contract" enabling persons completing a course of study to update their know-how and skills at regular intervals. �