Society

ECJ rules Poland in breach of EU Treaties for rules on judges

Quote from Terry Reintke MEP

The European Court of Justice has just ruled that Poland is in breach of the EU Treaties for measures aimed at lowering the retirement age of judges, at different ages for men and women, and for allowing the Minister of Justice discretion to prolong judges' service. The Greens/EFA group have long argued that this amounts to political interference in the independence of the Polish judiciary and runs counter to the rule of law and European values.

Affordable and adequate housing for all

Access to housing is a fundamental right. No one should have to choose between a place to sleep and a meal to eat. We call for an EU wide target of at least 3% of GDP to be spent on housing.

EU must change from a kerosene tax paradise to a global pioneer for climate action

Aviation/CO2 tax

The non-governmental organisation "Transport and Environment" today published a study, kept secret by the European Commission, on the consequences of a kerosene tax on aviation.

Greens/EFA call for strong new law on social rights

Social Union

On the 1st of May, all over Europe we will celebrate worker’s and social rights. On this occasion, the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament are putting on the table a series of demands for a real Social Union.

Greens/EFA demands for a Social Union

Greens/EFA are convinced that we urgently need clear steps towards the sustainable transformation of our economy and the creation of quality, long-term jobs. Europe needs a plan to face the challenges of climate change and a just transition roadmap that fairly distributes the benefits as well as the effort required to get to a resource-efficient future economy.

New rules wasted opportunity to tackle dual quality of products

Consumer protection

The European Parliament voted on better enforcement and modernisation of EU consumer protection rules. While there are some improvements on current consumer protection legislation, today's changes are a wasted opportunity to tackle the dual quality of products.

For a Europe with MORE!

It's time to turn away from austerity thinking to a real social Union that benefits people. Ahead of the International Workers' Day, the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament are putting on the table a series of demands to fight social exclusion, poverty & unemployment in the European Union.

Affordable and adequate housing for all

Access to housing is a fundamental right. No one should have to choose between a place to sleep and a meal to eat. We need a European framework for social and affordable housing to ensure there are enough inclusive, energy-efficient and healthy homes throughout Europe.

We need decent minimum incomes for all in Europe

Too many people in the European Union cannot make ends meet and live a decent life. We want this to change. The Greens/EFA group is calling for a minimum income scheme in all EU countries to be set at 60% of the national median income. It’s time for the EU to become a union of solidarity, not austerity.

Parliament vote on mobility risks creating second class workers

Mobility Package

The majority of Members of the European Parliament, have voted in favour of exemptions for a range of transport journeys from the Posting of Workers Directive.

Consumer rights: time for a class action mechanism in the EU

The European Parliament today adopted its position on new legislation regarding a collective redress mechanism to be used by consumers throughout the EU. Unfortunately, Member States in the Council are slacking in moving forward on this, thereby not recognising the need for such a tool for the protection of consumers.

Majority voted against the free internet

Copyright

The Greens/EFA group had joined the protests of millions of people and received a petition of over 5 million people against this law. The agreement adopted today will make upload filters the norm and restrict possibilities of expression due to licensing obligations that are impossible to fulfil.