PES president Sergei Stanishev said: “We are happy that the European Commission is pointing in the right direction, after years of blindly following the conservative-inspired austerity policies. I want to welcome the initiative of Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven to host a summit dedicated specifically to the social pillar. The economy must not be the main logic behind our policies, social rights should go first. We, the European Progressives, have made this case for the last years and we expect the European Commission to propose an ambitious Social Pillar, to help people have decent wages and working conditions”.
Stanishev said: “We expect the European Commission to adopt an ambitious, wide-ranging approach which can bring upward social convergence between our countries, which can help bridge the gender pay gap and guarantee a good work – life balance. We need the Commission to match the ambition shown by the European Parliament last week, when a strong cross-party majority approved the good report of our progressive colleague Maria João Rodrigues”.