Social protection: strategy for modernising

The European Parliament adopted Mr. Jan Andersson's (PES, S) resolution setting out Parliament's position on the Commission's strategy for modernising social security. The European Parliament stressed the need for taxation and social security schemes to be devised in such a way as to enable more effective action to be taken against employment traps. It should be noted that the European Parliament reminds the Commission and the Council of Parliament's previous call for a switch from tax on labour to tax on other resources, such as the environment, energy and consumption. The Council is called up to take decisions on the proposals put forward in the 'Monti' fiscal package with a view to establishing the framework needed to help relieve the burden placed by social security costs on employment whilst providing stable funding for social welfare schemes in order to combat unfair competition in the field of taxation. Parliament also called on the Commission to submit an assessment to establish whether a tax on energy or emissions would be an appropriate means, in the long term, of securing the funding of social security systems. The Commission is invited to put forward proposals to improve the 1978 Directive on the progressive implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security, particularly with regard to pensionable age and the rights of surviving dependants, with a view to bringing it into line with the more advanced Directive on equal treatment for men and women in occupational social security schemes. The Parliament points out that social protection schemes must take into account the emergence of new forms of working and better protection for the self-employed. Furthermore, the EP calls on the Commission to consider drawing up a separate social action programme for social policy in the context of enlargement.�