Commissioner McCreevy must make himself accountable to European Parliament after attack on Swedish social model

12 octobre 2005

Mary Lou McDonald MEP

Sinn Féin MEP for Dublin Mary Lou McDonald has today questioned ‘whether the European Commission agrees with the latest pronouncements of Commissioner McCreevy’ after he attacked the Swedish labour market model.

Ms McDonald made her comments after the European Parliament voted to invite the Commissioner for the Internal Market, Charlie McCreevy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to address the
Parliament on remarks Mr McCreevy made in Sweden regarding a legal case over the country’s collective wage agreements.

Speaking from Brussels Ms McDonald said:

“MEPs have today decided to invite Commissioner McCreevy and the European Commission President to address the Parliament regarding Mr McCreevy’s recent comments. It is not very often that Commissioners are called before
the Parliament, and it certainly seems to suggest that MEPs from across Europe are irked by Mr McCreevy’s most recent comments.

“The Nordic model for social provision has been held up as a model of best practice for other countries, not least in the area of childcare. Is Mr McCreevy really saying that the Swedish social model must be altered?

“When Commissioner McCreevy was elected to his current position this time last year, we called upon him to abandon the right-wing, anti-social agenda he pursued in Ireland as Minister for Finance. Unfortunately, Mr
McCreevy seems intent on gutting the European social model, in favour of a Europe obsessed with markets to the detriment of a socially inclusive EU”.ENDS