All progressive forces in the European Parliament should agree to only approve a new President of the European Commission who will commit to revise the EU’s Public Procurement Directive. That is the conclusion drawn by Left EMPL Coordinator Nikolaj Villumsen and the Red Green Alliance’s frontrunner for the European elections, Per Clausen, after today’s meeting with the EUNI Europa trade union.
Productive meeting in Copenhagen
A good and productive meeting with the European trade union movement. This is how Nikolaj Villumsen describes this morning’s meeting with Oliver Roethig, who is the Regiona Secretary of the large European service employees union, UniEuropa.
The meeting came about as part of Roethig’s visit to Denmark, where he will otherwise meet with the association’s Danish members. At the top of the agenda was the fight to have the EU’s controversial procurement directive revised – a fight the Danish Red-Green Alliance and UniEuropa are both very active in. Nikolaj Villumsen describes the discussions as follows:
We discussed how we must ensure that in the future there will be no social dumping with public money in the EU! The current EU public procurement rules do not support decent work. The rules do not work for workers, companies or citizens – and they are blatantly wrong. I agree with UNI Europa that only companies that follow or respect a collective agreement should be able to be awarded public contracts.
Must be a core issue after the election
The Red-Green Alliance’s leading candidate for the EU Parliament, former Danish MP, Per Clausen was also part of the meeting, which he believes gave bot food for thought and also hopes for the future. Clausen makes it clear that, as an EU Member of Parliament, he will make the requirement for a Public Procurement revision a core requirement when it comes to the approval of the next EU Commission:
For me, it is clear: You should not be able to approve a new President of the European Commission who does not agree to reopen the controversial procurement directive. The same applies to the future Employment Commissioner. It is something I will actively work to promote in the European Parliament.
Plans to continue the close cooperation
Both Nikolaj Villumsen and Per Clausen make it clear that the ambition after the European elections is to continue the close cooperation between the Red-Green Alliance in the European Parliament and the European trade union movement.
I have seen how Nikolaj has managed to create concrete, left-oriented results through his close cooperation with the European trade union movement, and I hope to be able to continue that, says Per Clausen.
In my view, it is only natural to build on the good cooperation we have had, and I am happy that Per wants to continue that fight. The trade union movement has an insight and concrete experience of what is actually needed, which we politicians need to listen to, concludes Nikolaj Villumsen.