Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-05-30-Speech-4-052"
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".
Madam President, may I start by thanking Parliament and the rapporteur, Mr Howitt, for their tremendous support and very productive help in drafting this communication. There was huge involvement in the consultations, as one speaker has already mentioned; over 250 people were involved and I should like, if I may, to comment on the substance of the agreement which has come out of this overall consultation. We have confirmed that we agree that, when we say companies' social responsibilities, we mean the basis on which companies voluntarily incorporate their social and environmental concerns. And they do so, of course, in a way which goes beyond current statutory requirements. Τhe incentive for companies to take this action must not of course fly in the face of the rules of the economy, which is why it is vital to make sure everyone is clear and knows that when companies implement social responsibility programmes, they improve both their profits and their consumer acceptance.
With this in mind, as regards the debate on whether this should be done on a voluntary basis or enshrined in law, I would say that, for the moment at least, as we are just starting to coordinate at European level, it really should be on a voluntary basis, but that the initiatives and endeavours made should be such that the final result, that is, the maximum number of companies involved, should be the same as if it were a statutory requirement. What does this mean? It means we need government agencies and planning in the field of companies' social responsibilities at both national and European level dealing with, one: information and, when I say information, I mean that we need to publicise the fact that companies constantly and consistently involved in social responsibility programmes have improved their profits considerably, and two: coordinating these efforts, so that we obtain optimum social and economic results, and by this I mean coordinating small and medium-sized enterprises, transparency, one of the most important issues dealt with by the rapporteurs, the facility to verify what companies say and new structures to evaluate company profiles. This is an area in which there are differing approaches and views and the Commission will present its final proposal in July. And then, of course, there is the question of compatibility with existing international agreements, such as the guidelines of the OECD or the International Labour Organisation, so that we can also work with developing world countries.
I should like now to comment on a number of very specific points made in the parliamentary report. As I said, and this is clear from your report, transparency and the facility to measure and compare companies' social and environmental performance is absolutely vital; in fact, in some countries, companies are already required to provide some sort of information on their social and environmental impact. These statutory requirements in certain Member States could help enormously in increasing transparency and we could use a procedure between the Member States to see what the positive results of this approach are. Of course, I agree with Mrs Κratsa that the question of equal opportunities, as regards policy both within the company and outside, is one of the basic points. I intend to propose that a European forum on companies' social responsibilities be set up in order to provide a platform at European level for all the interested parties to consider practices and means in connection with companies' social responsibilities and, of course, to help with what we have said, that is, information and coordination both within the European Union and at international level.
This forum could also examine whether or not there is a need for the ombudsman referred to in item 51. Similarly, item 29 contains an important message on the need to mainstream companies' social responsibilities and I totally agree with this. What I intend to do is to propose that the Commission incorporate companies' social responsibilities in the European Union's policies and in Commission affairs, so as to ensure that there is support for the development of companies' social responsibilities. On item 30, I agree on the role of the public administrations, as I described earlier, and as regards item 36 on the need for special cooperation with third countries, there is a whole dimension to our proposal on the role of European companies outside the borders of the European Union.
Companies' social responsibilities can obviously be expressed in the strategy on employment and we shall be looking at the open coordination method to see how we can present the best results and, of course, the social economy sector has a great deal of experience in social responsibility. These companies have a different basic approach and interests to other companies but can provide fundamental help, especially through cooperation and networks between the Member States. Finally, on item 53, I agree with what you say about core labour standards but, as you know, the Commission is already proposing to include core labour standards in bilateral agreements at European and international level and in all related policy areas of the European Union, that is, in trade, development, external relations and social matters.
I should like once again to thank Mr Howitt and all the MEPs who took part in what was a difficult debate and say that your report was the final and most important contribution to the dialogue and consultations on the Green Paper. I and my colleague Mr Liikanen intend to submit the final version of the Green Paper in June, once it has been approved by the Commission."@en1
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