Open Europe press summary: 5 November 2008

Europe

48-hour EU working week opt-out under threat;
Lib Dem MEP: Brown faces a huge test of his leadership in securing opt-out
The European Parliament's employment committee has today voted to end Britain's opt-out from EU rules which limit the working week elsewhere in Europe to 48 hours, amid concerns that the move would add red-tape to British companies just as the coming recession puts business under added pressure. PA reports that Labour MEPs were among the 35 who voted in favour, with 13 against ending the opt-out, which was negotiated by the former Conservative administration in 1993.

The issue now goes to the full European Parliament, who will vote on the proposal in December. In the Telegraph, Bruno Waterfield notes that although British ministers have vowed to keep the British exemption from the working week, should the EP vote to end it, the issue will have to be decided by a summit of European leaders. The final decision would be taken by a qualified-majority vote, leaving Britain without a veto.

PA quotes Alistair Tebbit, Head of EU and Employment Policy at the Institute of Directors, saying that "MEPs have made a big mistake by voting in favour for abolition of the opt-out. As the EU enters recession, employers need more flexibility, not less. We urge the Government to fight for retention of the opt-out with every ounce of effort it can muster."

Liz Lynne, a Liberal Democrat MEP, is quoted in the Telegraph as saying: "Scrapping the opt-out would be a bitter pill to swallow for businesses and many hard working people who want to boost their earnings in difficult economic times. Gordon Brown now faces a huge test of his leadership in securing the support of his own Labour MEPs, who have consistently voted to remove the UK's opt out of the 48 hour week."

In June, the UK agreed with other EU members that Britain could remain outside the European working time directive in exchange for boosting temporary workers' rights, but that deal could unravel should MEPs next month vote against extending the opt-out.
Telegraph PA

EU ministers call for tighter financial controls
The FT reports that EU finance ministers yesterday approved a set of proposals in advance of a global summit this month on strengthening the world's financial system. The proposals included the rapid creation of supervisory colleges for all significant cross-border financial companies, and stronger risk control mechanisms to be placed under the direct responsibility of senior management.

The article notes that although leaders stopped short of 'a root-and-branch reform' of world capitalism, the conclusions from the meeting still amounted to a tactical success for France, the current holder of the EU's rotating presidency. According to Euractiv, ministers did not act on the European Commission's action plan based on injecting more cash into the European economy while bypassing commercial banks

The FT notes that the UK appeared to be the only large country with reservations over the French proposals, arguing that they were in some respects too detailed for the November 15 summit, which will take place during the transition from one US administration to the next. In turn, France and other EU countries suspect that Gordon Brown is still keen to preserve a light-touch regulatory regime for the City of London.

Luxembourg PM Jean-Claude Juncker is quoted saying that the near-collapse of the global financial system should is the fault of the "deregulatory frenzy" of recent years. "States had to counter a market failure. This is a natural role for governments, though they may have forgotten this over the last 20 years," he said.

The principles will now be forwarded to the EU summit on Friday of all 27 EU heads of government, who will shape them into a negotiating position for Europe at a summit of the G20 in Washington on November 15.
FT WSJ Euractiv Coulisses de Bruxelles Irish Times Telegraph

Mortished: EU's emissions trading scheme too volatile to curb carbon
In the Times, Carl Mortished argues that the recent collapse of the price of carbon questions the effectiveness of the EU's emissions trading system (ETS) in curbing carbon. He notes, "If there is to be any prospect of a serious cut in carbon, there must be stability in carbon pricing. Although a financial market gives useful price signals, it cannot provide stability. Only a stable regulatory regime can provide certainty, but that means carbon taxes and a policy leap that no one is yet willing to make."
Times Guardian

Jobless migrants who go home can still claim benefits
The Mail reports that primarily Eastern European migrants who leave the UK because they have lost their jobs in the economic downturn are still eligible for a £60-a-week handout from the British government. It is noted that an EU directive relating to the free movement of people makes it possible for an unemployed worker to continue to be paid benefits by the country where they were laid off, given that the worker is seeking a job in their homeland. The TaxPayers' Alliance is quoted saying: "The benefit system was invented as a safety net for people in this country fallen on hard times. If you choose to go back to Poland, there is no way you should be allowed to continue claiming off the UK taxpayer"

A spokesperson for the DWP said that, "You cannot receive this form of Jobseeker's Allowance unless you have been paying National Insurance contributions. The individual would only be eligible for up to a maximum of three months Jobseeker's Allowance support. British citizens are eligible for the same sort of help from other EU member states."
Mail

During a visit to Ireland yesterday, Latvian President Valdis Zatlers called for an Irish re-run on the Lisbon Treaty. "Corrective measures are always possible - we have to be patient and just ask this question once more when you are ready," he said.
Irish Times

Danish PM prepares ground for euro referendum
The FT reports that Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen yesterday sought political support for a referendum on adopting the European single currency after the central bank revealed that it has used almost a fifth of its reserves last month to defend the krone's peg to the euro. Rasmussen fears that that support for the euro in country - just over 50 percent according to recent opinion polls - could disappear during a referendum campaign unless the government has broad political support. The PM will soon begin talks with the opposition parties, with the leftwing Socialist People's party being seen as the key to a referendum, according to Berlingske. Although exact dates are yet to be discussed, Rasmussen has said that he intends to hold a referendum during the current mandate period, which ends in November 2011.
FT Berlingske

Peter Mandelson has rejected pressure to disclose all his contacts with the Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska.
Independent

A poll conducted by STEM agency for CTK shows that 55 percent of all Czechs are against the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.
Ceskenoviny

Tusk will not go to EU summit
Polish President Lech Kaczynski will go alone to Friday's EU summit, the Polish government has announced. PM Donald Tusk, who will be staying home, said he did not want a repeat of the October summit, when Kaczynski chartered his own plane and gatecrashed the EU meeting.
EUobserver

The EU aims to tackle fiscal fraud by imposing a requirement for big companies to declare VAT for big companies every month, instead of every quarter.
Metro

The European Parliament civil liberties committee has backed the idea of introducing sanctions, administrative as well as criminal, against employers who hire undocumented immigrants from outside Europe.
EUobserver