On July 1, Slovenia started its six-month term as the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The country picks up the baton from Portugal, which has been leading this institution since January and will close the trio that began with Germany during the second half of 2020.
This will be the second time (the first instance took place in 2008) that the Slovenians have held the presidency since joining the Union in 2004. This time, the president will be the country’s prime minister, Janez Janša, whose primary responsibility will be to organize and carry out chair meetings, as well as to work out compromises capable of resolving difficulties in the negotiations with the Commission and the Parliament. The motto that has been chosen to encompass his mandate has been “Together. Resilient. Europe,“ as its main objective is to strengthen the European Union’s resilience in the face of existing crises and challenges through joint work, mutual support, and solidarity.
The new government’s program is composed of four policy priorities:
– facilitating the EU’s recovery and strengthening its resilience
– reflecting on Europe’s future
– strengthening the rule of law and European values
– enhancing security and stability in the European Neighborhood
This program is divided into two parts: the first is an overview of all the issues that the Presidency would like to devote special attention to while leading the Council. The second one is more extensive and will primarily follow the “inherited” agenda by former presidencies. That is to say, it will deal with the events that are on the Council’s agenda since prior planning has already occurred.
The work program includes several initiatives and negotiations that the country wants to advance during the mandate and that is of special interest to companies, which we hace grouped into four thematic areas:
Economic recovery
The Presidency’s program priority is to advocate for actions that work for the recovery and resilience of Europe, from the reform of the rule of law to the promotion of European values, stability, and security.
The economic crisis is one of the current challenges of this presidency, and the new program’s main objective is to contribute to finding a solution to its recovery. That is why from July onwards, Slovenia will devote special attention to the application and implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Fund to funnel much-needed monetary resources to the 27 Member States.
In addition, the presidency aims to create a credible and secure European Union, capable of ensuring security and stability in its neighborhood. The aim is to effectively contribute to the protection of Europe’s interests in the world and to promote the transatlantic agenda, close cooperation with the United States and NATO.
On the other hand, Slovenia wants to assist the Council in advancing the accession process of new countries to the European Union. This presidency will host the EU- Western Balkans Summit in Slovenia in the fall to support Western Balkan countries and contribute to their economic recovery and resilience, their security, connectivity, green transition, and youth agendas.
Employment
The Slovenian presidency will continue the debate on strengthening social Europe, focusing on the implementation of the commitments agreed at the social summit that took place in Porto last May. This includes the implementation of recovery and resilience plans in the social field. Moreover, Slovenia will also prepare conclusions on a lifelong approach to aging, with an emphasis on promoting work quality for all generations. These conclusions will respond to the Communication on a new strategic framework for safety and health at work, the updated Skills Agenda, the Equality Strategy, the EU Strategy on the rights of people with disabilities, and the conclusions of the public consultation on the Green Paper on Ageing.
Lastly, this presidency will give priority to the proposal on minimum wage, seeking broad support for the proposed Directive, and will continue negotiations on the wage transparency initiative. Slovenia will draft Council conclusions on the impact of digitalization and artificial intelligence on gender equality in the labor market. They will continue these negotiations, seeking to come to an agreement with the European Parliament on the coordination of social security systems.
Competitiveness
In the area of competitiveness, the Slovenian presidency wants to make as much progress as possible on the Services Act and the Digital Markets Act, to reach an agreement in the Council. On the other hand, it will encourage as much progress as possible on the implementation of the New Consumer Agenda, leading negotiations on the revision of the Consumer Credit Directive, the Directive on Consumer Empowerment for the Green Transition, and the General Product Safety Directive.
Additionally, the presidency will continue discussions on the updated European Industrial Strategy and work to coordinate structural and sectoral measures. This seeks to restore the tourism ecosystem, advocating for SME access to a range of funding sources, investment in sustainable and digital renovation, growth and development of basic tourism and travel infrastructure, and investment in skills. To this end, work will continue the preparation of a medium- and long-term EU Tourism Agenda 2030/2050.
This complete program foresees certain developments and changes in the European landscape that will meet some of today’s needs. An important economic recovery, improvements in employment, competitiveness, and markets, towards a more sustainable and digital Europe.
Rosario Marquez de Prado, Public Affairs Brussels
