Member states must increase their efforts in order to adapt citizens’ skills to new challenges in the labour market, according to conclusions entitled ‘New skills for new jobs’, adopted by the Social Affairs Council, on 7 June. This could, for example, be done by modernising and increasing flexibility of their education and training systems and programmes, developing the links between education, training and the labour market, promoting the participation of the younger and older generations as well as low-skilled and other disadvantaged groups in the labour market and enhancing the role of public employment services.

The European Commission is invited to propose, during the autumn of 2010, further steps to develop this initiative and to consider strengthening the role of the EU funding mechanisms in the development of measures to anticipate skills demand and supply.

Despite the title, these conclusions do not relate to the flagship initiative ‘An agenda for new skills and jobs’ announced by the Commission in its ‘Europe 2020’ communication. They are based on the executive’s communication of 16 December 2008 entitled ‘New skills for news jobs - Anticipating and matching labour market and skills needs’. In particular, this proposes improving the capacity to anticipate the needs of the labour market, making better use of existing initiatives and instruments, collecting results that are comparable at European level and favouring a labour market that meets the mobility requirements and aspirations of citizens.

The conclusions are available at www.europolitics.info > Search = 273921