Policy Instruments of the European Commission: General Directorate Websites addressing Civil Society

Transcription

1 CONNEX Research Group 4 (Team B) Work Package B2: EU-Society Relations and the Formation of a Multi-level Intermediary Political Space Activity 1: Inventory of Policy Instruments Policy Instruments of the European Commission: General Directorate Websites addressing Civil Society 1. Introduction During the 1990s, the European Union has intensified its efforts to include societal actors into EU politics in order to bring the Union closer to its citizens. This process has, amongst other things, resulted in the dominant role the EU Commission has assigned to openness and partnership with civil society in its White Paper on European Governance (Commission 2001) and other documents which discuss the future of European governance (f.e. Commission 2002). 1 In fact, the European Union, the Commission in particular, has developed principles and instruments that link a variety of societal actors ranging from business and labor interests to experts and the so-called non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to European politics and support transnational cooperation. Different types of societal actors, on the other hand, have directed their activities towards the European level of decision making in a growing number of Community policies and issue areas. New actors have entered the European stage and existing actors have developed European political strategies, pooled their resources and built networks and coalitions in order to enhance communication and participate in the European political process. The objective of this report is to give an overview of the types of policy instruments which the Commission (and its General Directorates respectively) employs in order to shape its relations with civil society and to illustrate this overview with some selected examples. For this purpose, we will draw on a broad definition of civil society including different types of private and public interest groups as well as the platforms, networks and coalitions they have formed to articulate their goals and enhance communication at the Community level. This broad concept defines civil society organisations by their orientation towards peaceful agency, non-profit making and public justification. 1 See for this discussion. 1

2 Scholars of European Integration have pointed out that the Commission and its institutional interests have shaped the discourse of European civil society (e.g. Kohler-Koch 2001; 2004; Smismans 2003; Geyer 2001). The Commission s current focus on civil society has emanated from its interest to enhance relations with societal actors other than the social partners in the field of social policy in the mid-1990s. Facing the growing importance of social issues such as gender, racism and social inclusion on the Community agenda after the Maastricht Treaty and drawing on a well established social dialogue, the Commission introduced the concept of civil dialogue to complement the dialogue with the social partners in In the same year, the first European Social Policy Forum convening more than 1000 participants mainly from NGOs in the social sphere was initiated by the Commission together with the European Parliament s Committee of Social and Employment Affairs (see e.g. Smismans 2003 for details). The White Paper on European Governance (Commission 2001) has earmarked a new trend in the development of the Commission s civil society discourse. The White Paper has broadened the Commission s concept of civil society in view of the legitimacy crisis of the European Union in general and the Brussels bureaucracy in particular. Civil society now includes all types of intermediary actors and all types of dialogue and consultation with these actors, it has been transferred to sectors other than social policy and it has been re-invented as a resource for legitimate and effective European Governance (Commission 2001; see BKK; Smismans 2005). However, it should be noticed that the Commission s interaction with societal organisations is not only affected by the discourse of civil society and participatory governance but also by the Commission s institutional interest in output legitimacy and efficiency. This interest has resulted in a preference for competent and professional, well organised EU level consultation partners. These developments highlight the background against which the policy instruments the Commission employs to consult and involve societal actors into its decision making process have to be reviewed. For this paper, we have focused on the involvement tools and instruments the Commission currently (February/March 2005) presents on the Europa Server at These websites are the most easily accessible resource of information for civic actors aiming at the involvement with the European Commission as well as for interested citizens and the general public. 2. Involvement Instruments and Consultation Partners of the Commission 2

3 On its introductory website on The European Commission and Civil Society, the Commission explains the rationale and partners of consultation and dialogue with civil society and interested parties as follows: Before making proposals, the Commission must be aware of new situations and issues developing in Europe and it must consider whether the EU legislation is the best way to deal with them. That is why the Commission consults and is in constant touch with external parties when elaborating its policies. It also consults in the framework of the legislative process, two advisory bodies the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, and seeks the opinions of national parliaments and governments (europa.eu.int/comm./civil_society/apgen_en.htm, , emphasis added). We will focus here on instruments addressing external parties. The objective of their consultation is to ensure that interested parties are heard properly in the policy-making process. Consultation is based on the principle of openness and hence there is no general registration or accreditation system for interest groups. However, as almost all General Directorates (GDs) of the Commission have contacts with interested parties, each GD has developed its own mechanisms of dialogue and consultation. The tools the Commission itself lists on its website are Green and White Papers, Communications, Consultation Documents, Advisory Committees, Expert Groups and Adhoc-consultations, including Internet consultations which have, according to the Commission, become a common practice. The Commission points out that consultation is usually a combination of different tools being implemented in different stages of the policy process (ibid.). Moreover, civil society organisations are eligible to apply for grants and loans different Commission DGs offer for the implementation of projects and programmes such as for the Evaluation of the economic and social impact of social inclusion policies within the framework of the Open Method of Coordination (as of June 14, 2005). Grants and loans can hence be considered as an instrument the Commission employs to involve civil society actors into its policy process (europa.eu.int/grants/index_en.htm). In fact, some GDs present a link to tenders & calls for proposals on the sections of their websites which address civil society issues (e.g. GD Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities at: europa.eu.int/comm./employment_social/fundamental_righs/civil/civ_en.htm, ). External parties involved with the Commission (public as well as private interest groups) are listed in the directory of non-profit making civil society organisations of the CONECCS database (europa.eu.int/comm./civil_society/coneccs/index_en.htm, ). The directory 3

4 currently ( ) encompasses 721 organisations as different as the AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe and the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments. However, the directory of non-profit making civil society organisations must not be considered a complete list of the Commission s consultation partners. As the Commission does not maintain an official accreditation system, the registration in CONECCS is not obligatory to get involved with the Commission. The CONECCS database also lists regular consultative groups in which external actors can participate in its consultative bodies section. This section currently ( ) includes 129 consultative groups such as the Agricultural Tractors Working Group, the DG Environment - NGO Dialogue with Candidate and Balkan Countries or the European Consumer Consultative Group ECCG to mention a few. Each registration contains information on the objectives, year of registration, frequency of meetings, and membership of the consultative groups. These bodies have usually been created by a Commission decision and are chaired by the respective GD. They convene in frequencies which can range from twice a year (in the case of DG Environment - NGO Dialogue with Candidate and Balkan Countries ) to 40 times a year (in the case of DG Trade Civil Society Dialogue consultation group). Some GDs present a list of their consultative bodies (including a link to the respective CONECCS registration) on their website (e.g. DG Agriculture at europa.eu.int/ comm/agriculture/consultations/adco/index_en.htm, or DG Consumer Affairs at europa.eu.int/comm./consumers/cons_org/associations/commit/index_en.htm, ). Besides these formal consultative bodies which have been initiated by the Commission, there is a range of EU level forums, networks, and umbrella organizations which have been formed by civil society organisations and belong to the Commission s favourite partners for ad-hoc as well as structured forms of dialogue and consultation. Many of them such as AGE (The European Older People s Platform), ENAR (European Network Against Racism) or the European Women s Lobby are financially supported by the Commission. Many of these informal, EU level civil society actors have emerged in the field of social policy in which the Commission maintains a structural dialogue with the Platform of European Social NGOs. The Platform includes 39 EU level forums, networks, and umbrella organisations in the field of social policy such as AGE, Caritas Europa, the European Anti-Poverty Network, ENAR, the European Women s Lobby or the European Youth Forum ( ). The Commission has supported the Platform with in 2004/2005 (europa.eu.int/comm./employment_social/fundamental_rights/civil/civ_en.htm, ). 4

5 The structured dialogue between the Commission and the Platform of European Social NGOs takes the form of regular bi-annual meetings with representatives of different GDs (most notably with DG Employment, Social Affairs, and Equal Opportunity but in 2005 also with DG Education and Culture) and representatives of the Platform. Similarly, the GD Development and Humanitarian Aid has established a continuous dialogue with CONCORD (European NGO Confederation for Relief and Development) a network of 27 national NGOs and EU level NGO networks including Oxfam International, World Vision, or the International Planned Parenthood Federation IPPF. The GD Development and Humanitarian Aid indicates that high level Commission officials (including the Commissioner) meet representatives of CONCORD on a regular basis to discuss the Commission s present and future policy priorities (europa.eu.int/comm./development/body/ theme/ngo/index_en.htm, ). And the GD Health and Consumer Protection maintains a structured dialogue with organised civil society via an annual Assembly of Consumer Associations which has brought together about 300 representatives of national and EU level consumer organisations (europa.eu.int/comm./ consumers/cons_org/assembly/index_en.htm, ). More recently, the online discussions and consultations which the Commission has introduced in the aftermath of its White Paper on European Governance via the internet portal Your Voice in Europe (europa.eu.int/yourvoice/index_en.htm) have shifted into the focus of attention. They represent a new category of involvement instruments which do not only address organised societal actors but also individual citizens. Most GDs of the Commission run online consultations in their policy fields and offer a link to Your Voice in Europe in the sections of their websites which address civil society issues (see table 1). The Your Voice in Europe internet portal contains (1) a consultations section on specific policy initiatives of the Commission which can be accessed via a list of EU policies (corresponding GDs); (2) a discussions section which addresses more general issues of EU affairs and provides forums and discussion lists for chats and debates; and (3) a your experiences section for anonymous complaints of citizens. The Commission indicates its main target group(s) for each online consultation such as business, stakeholders or public. Reports are provided on the results of closed (i.e. concluded) consultations. The report on the Stakeholder consultation on the implementation of the EU forestry strategy which was closed on Sept 22, 2004 contains, for example, information on the number of contributions by type of contributor. Contributions came from private individuals, private companies, academia, NGOs, associations and federations (i.e. 5

6 private interest groups such as landowner associations and political parties), government bodies, member states. The statistics in the report show that most contributions came from the categories associations and federations (14), governmental bodies (13), and private individuals (12) followed by NGOs (9) (europa.eu.int/comm./agriculture/consultations/ index_en.htm, ). Taking a look at the appended table which provides an overview of the way different GDs of the Commission address the issue of societal involvement shows that have become an involvement tool most of the GDs make use of. Even those GDs which do not directly address civil society or citizens present a list of open and closed consultations or a link to Your Voice in Europe. 3. Conclusion The table appended gives an impression which General Directorates have a particular focus on societal involvement. The involvement of organized civil society can be distinguished here from efforts to address and involve individual citizens. We would assign the Online Consultations which are deployed by almost all GDs to the latter category whereas the involvement of organised societal actors via official consultative groups (as listed in CONECCS) and the dialogue with EU level umbrella organizations, networks or forums belong to the first category. Whereas almost all GDs make an effort to address individual citizens, there are some GDs which can be pointed out because they aim at the structuring of their dialogue with organised societal actors. In this context, the GD Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities can be pointed out as well as the GD Development and Humanitarian Affairs and the GD Health and Consumer Affairs. All of them have implemented a structured dialogue with EU level societal associations. It can be assumed that these forms of structured dialogue with EU level NGO forums are more open and transparent than consultations which unfold within the consultative bodies established and chaired by the Commission. Moreover, it leaves the initiative at least to some degree with the societal actors rather than the Commission. However, the GD Trade should also be mentioned here in terms of openness to civic participation. GD Trades does not maintain a structured dialogue with an EU level NGO forum, but it has established a DG Trade Civil Society Dialogue consultative group with an outstanding frequency of 40 meetings per year. 6

7 Finally, we would like to point to the fact that private interest groups which the Commission labels as part of a European civil society in various documents and which can be expected to be important partners of many GDs do not surface as dialogue partners on the GD websites. Most GDs like to emphasize their interactive ties with different NGOs but do not really mention the private interest groups they regularly consult with. Bibliography Commission of the European Communities 2001: European Governance. A White Paper, COM (2001) 428 final, Brussels. Commission of the European Communities 2002: Report from the Commission on European Governance, COM (2002) 705 final, Brussels. Geyer, Robert 2001: Can European Union (EU) Social NGOs Co-operate to Promote EU Social Policy?, in Journal of Social Policy, 30, 3, Smismans, Stijn 2003: European Civil Society: shaped by discourses and institutional interests, in: European Law Journal, 9, 4, Kohler-Koch, Beate 2004: Legitimes Regieren in der EU. Eine kritische Auseinandersetzung mit dem Weißbuch zum Europäischen Regieren, in: Kaiser, André /Zittel, Thomas (Hg.), Demokratietheorien und Demokratieentwicklung. Festschrift für Peter Graf Kielmannsegg, Opladen, S Kohler-Koch, Beate 2001: The Commission White Paper and the Improvement of European Governance, in: Joerges, Christian et al. (Hg.), Mountain or Molehill? A critical appraisal of the Commission White Paper on Governance, Cambridge, S

8 Appendix: Commission General Directorates Addressing Civil Society Commission GD Administrative Affaires and Anti Fraud Agriculture and Rural Development Homepage Section Addressing Societal Involvement (at ) Advisory Groups - general information - list of advisory groups Competition - list of open and closed consultations - report on closed consultations European Competition Policy and the Citizen - consumer relevant events - information brochures Development and Humanitarian Aid Dialogue with Civil Society - general information - documents (e.g. guidelines on principles and good practices for participation of non state actors in development dialogues and consultations) - continuous dialogue with CONCORD (Confederation of European NGOs or Relief and Development) - information on dialogue events - regular consultation with the European Economic and Social Committee EESC - personal contact for questions concerning dialogue with civil society and participatory approach in development - website for questions on co-financing with European NGOs and decentralised co-operation Economic and Financial Affairs Education and Culture Link to Your Voice in Europe (at Europa Server) Partnership with Civil Society - Grants for debate and reflection projects by associations and federations established by European Citizens (call for proposals) - documents Link to Active European Citizenship (at Europa Server) Link to InfoNet Information and Partnership with Civil Society (at Europa Server) Link to Audiovisual Policy (at Europa Server) 8

9 Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Anti-discrimination and Relations with Civil Society - general information - list of funded European social NGOs - structural dialogue with Platform of European Social NGOs - NGO relevant call for tenders - NGO relevant call for proposals concerning selected projects - list of European social NGOs Energy and Transport Enlargement Link to Platform of European Social NGOs Link to Civil Society Website of Commission Secretary General (at Europa Server) Enterprise and Industry Enterprises in Dialogue - general information - Link to Your Voice in Europe - Link to CONECCS (at Europa Server) Environment Environmental Governance & Civil Society - presentations, i.e. speeches and documents addressing civil society - NGO relevant grants and loans External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy Link to Environmental Communication Networks (at Europa Server) Link to EIONET - European Environment Information and Observation Network The EU s Relations with the Andean Community The EU s Relations with Latin America Civil Society Dialogue The EU s Relations with Mexico Civil Society Dialogue - general information, documents + events Financial Programming and Budget Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Public Hearing on Green Paper 9

10 Health and Consumer Protection 3 areas: public health food safety consumer affairs (for all 3 areas) No website addressing societal involvement in public health and food safety Consumer Affairs: Working together with Consumer Organisations - general information, events, documents - consumer associations and networks - structured dialogue: Annual Assembly of Consumer Organisations - Consumer Complaint Form - Inter-Active Consumer Education Project - consultative body: ECCG European Consumer Consultative Group Information, Society and Media Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy Internal Market and Services Dialogue with Citizens - information on citizens rights and opportunities in the internal market Justice and Home Affairs Regional Policy Science and Research Links to EU services for individual citizens: European Ombudsman, Solvit, Europe Direct etc. including full text statements of civil society, NGOs, others Keyword search civil society 1 result = link to documentation of 2003 Conference Governance of the European Research Area: The Role of Civil Society Taxation and Customs Link to Your Voice in Europe Link to CONECCS Link to The Future of Europe Debate Link to Science Internet Network (SINAPSE) Enforcing your rights - general information - Solvit Centres, Complaint, Petition Link to Your Voice in Europe 10

11 Trade Civil Society Dialogue with detailed information on procedure and participation Responsible for Report: Barbara Finke, CONNEX RG 4 (June 16, 2005) 11