Social Summit: Sassoli, “give a social dimension to reforms and investments to overcome the crisis”

In his address at the Social Summit in Porto, David Sassoli, President of the European Parliament, said that “Europe has vigorously responded to the economic and social crisis triggered by the pandemic. Under the EU Recovery Plan, Europe is providing the means to address structural problems and further advance towards a social Europe. Now more than ever, besides the Green Deal and the Digital Strategy, there is a need to strongly reaffirm the existence of a third pillar for the EU’s recovery and transformation, the European Pillar of Social Rights”. The transition process “towards a sustainable economy that we want to undertake cannot, therefore, be seen only through the prism of the investments needed to transform our productive model. The European project we want to build should take into account the needs of workers; it should focus on combating poverty and reducing inequality, and promote the dignity of persons”. Sassoli went on to explain: “Today in Porto, the European Pillar of Social Rights should serve as a road map to give a social dimension to the national reforms and investments we are funding and planning”. “It will thus be up to us to ensure that the national reform programmes submitted by Member States also include ambitious social measures”. The EU, “by supporting social inclusion and fighting poverty, must now seize the opportunity to promote a fair and just society where every citizen can live a dignified life”.
Gianni Borsa