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Media, 11 countries tell EU to back off on social policy

Among them Austria, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania

23 April, 13:27
(ANSA) - BELGRADE, APR 23 - Eleven EU member countries issued a statement in the form of a non-paper warning Lisbon and Brussels "to respect national authority over policymaking in areas such as labor and employment, pensions, education and childcare," Politico reported. Portugal is organising a May 7 summit on labor, welfare and other related issues.

"Targeted EU-level action can complement national action, but any action on EU-level should fully respect the division of competences of the Union, its Member States and the social partners," the statement reads, Politico reported. "Any EU initiative in these areas should be in line with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality and needs careful consideration of different national starting points, challenges and institutional setups. Setting EU-level headline targets could help to steer national debates, policies and reforms." The statement is endorsed by Austria, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands and Sweden. (ANSA).

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