On the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on establishing the European Competitiveness Fund ('ECF’), including the specific programme for defence research and innovation activities, repealing Regulations (EU) 2021/522, (EU) 2021/694, (EU) 2021/697, (EU) 2021/783, and amending Regulations (EU) 2021/696, (EU) 2023/588, (EU) [EDIP]
EMPL-PA-785132
Committee on Employment and Social Affairs · Rapporteur: Grégory Allione
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The Committee on Employment and Social Affairs proposes amendments to the proposed regulation establishing the European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), including the specific programme for defence research and innovation. The amendments insert skills development, social infrastructure and just transition measures throughout the text.¶¶ They add a requirement that an appropriate amount of each policy window's financial envelope go to skills actions, and that work programmes include a dedicated part on skills development coherent with the Union of Skills.¶¶¶ They widen the ECF's objectives to cover social infrastructure such as affordable housing, early childhood education and care, health and long-term care, and inclusive education and training including vocational education and training.¶¶ They add social partners, VET providers and civil society to stakeholder and governance bodies, and require investment guidelines to be prepared with the investment committee.¶¶¶ They add labour, social and environmental law compliance to the exclusion criteria, and make recovery of funds mandatory for breaches of transfer restrictions.¶¶
Committee position. The Committee on Employment and Social Affairs proposes amendments to the proposed regulation establishing the European Competitiveness Fund, mainly to add skills development, social infrastructure and just transition measures throughout the text and to give social partners and VET providers a role in ECF governance.¶¶
Key points
- Adds skills development of the workforce to the recital on reviving the innovation cycle, and digital leadership and a just transition to the priorities listed.¶
- Adds higher and vocational education and training providers to the actors in innovation and industrial ecosystems.¶
- Requires ECF work programmes to include a dedicated part on skills development and related investment activities, coherent with the Union of Skills.¶¶¶
- Adds a new recital stating that investments in social infrastructure, including affordable housing, early childhood education and care, health and long-term care, and inclusive education and training, are strategic enablers of competitiveness.¶
- States that an appropriate amount of each policy window's dedicated financial envelope should be allocated to actions supporting skills development.¶¶
- Adds social and employment impact to the ECF's general objective, and social infrastructure and skills development to its specific objectives.¶¶
- Adds skills development to the specific objectives for clean transition, health, agriculture and food security, digital leadership, defence, space and civil industrial security.¶¶¶
- Requires the Commission and member states to include skills development, in particular measures for workers in the just transition, in coordination with national and regional partnership plans.¶
- Adds to the exclusion criteria activities that do not comply with environmental, social and labour law obligations under Union law, national law, collective agreements or international provisions.¶
- Requires ECF funding to be reduced or fully or partially recovered if recipients breach transfer restrictions within 5 calendar years after an action ends.¶
- Requires the ECF Strategic Stakeholders Board to include cross-industry and sectoral social partners and SME organisations, and to advise on skills development and just transition measures.¶¶
- Requires the Investment Committee to have knowledge of social and skills investment, microfinance and social economy enterprises, and sets out skills support under Article 30, including a European Skills Guarantee.¶¶¶
Who is affected
- Workers and jobseekers: the amendments add upskilling, reskilling and just transition measures to ECF support.¶¶
- Small and medium-sized enterprises and small mid-cap companies: the amendments add support for entrepreneurial and business skills and skills advice.¶¶
- Social partners, VET providers and civil society organisations: the amendments give them roles in ECF governance and consultations.¶¶
- ECF funding recipients: the amendments make recovery of funds mandatory for breaches of transfer restrictions.¶