Back from the summer break, the European Social Democrats (S&D) have criticised the European Commission’s attitude to the Roma dossier and announced that they may, at the beginning of 2011, launch a citizens’ initiative for the creation of a tax on financial transactions.

It is on these two points that the leader of the European Parliament’s S&D group, Martin Schulz (Germany), insisted when addressing the press, on 2 September in Brussels. MEPs will hold a lively debate on the first subject, on 7 September in the Strasbourg plenary, following the controversy aroused by the expulsion of Roma in France. The Socialist leader strongly contests the attitude of Nicolas Sarkozy’s government, but also of Justice and Fundamental Rights Commissioner Viviane Reding, who announced that the “analysis” carried out by the Commission to determine whether France violated Community law by expelling European citizens will not be made public.

During the debate, Schulz will question the head of the executive on this subject because “silence could be interpreted as approval of the French government’s attitude”. He also underlines that the division of competences within the Barroso team is not clear between Reding and Cecilia Malmström (home affairs), whereas the issue of Roma integration should, according to him, be handled by just one commissioner. Parliament, which had already adopted a resolution on 25 March calling for “action plans” for the integration of Roma, could vote on a new resolution, on 9 September.

CITIZENS’ INITIATIVE?

The other key dossier for the Social Democrats in this new political year is the ‘financial supervisory package’, on which the plenary could take a decision during the session from 20 to 23 September if an agreement is reached with the Council. The Social Democrat family will not accept “anything which is not durable in terms of the surveillance of banks, insurance companies and various funds” and will defend the setting up of “binding monitoring standards,” which are identical in all member states. It also calls for better monitoring of the market for primary materials (including foodstuffs) and announces that it will join the general demonstration, on 29 September, launched by European trade unions. The S&D group opposes a “pure and simple austerity policy” and demands the creation of “instruments to revive growth”.

Lastly, during the Strasbourg session, Schulz will ask Barroso whether he intends to relinquish proposing a tax on financial transactions in the context of the budget reassessment, as implied by Taxation Commissioner Algirdas Semeta. “If EU institutions cannot manage to agree on such a tax, our group will launch a citizens’ initiative” at the beginning of 2011, warned the leader of the group, adding that it is inconceivable that “small players are continuing to pay the bills of large players” after the crisis.