Britten schrappen Europese Raad van oktober 2005 (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The British EU presidency is to cancel the traditional formal meeting of European leaders in October in favour of an informal discussion on the future of the bloc's social model, German news agencies reported on Thursday (4 August).

The meeting, which would normally take place in Brussels, was supposed to concentrate on how to fund the EU in the future after the budget summit failed in June. Instead, this issue is expected to be largely left to the Austrian presidency beginning in January.

The informal nature of the meeting means that the 25 EU leaders will not be flanked by their foreign and financial ministers, which may lead to a more off-the-cuff discussion.

Europe's social model and what it means and how it can be adapted to survive in an increasingly globalised world is one of the key themes to be thrown up in recent months, particularly in the run up to the French referendum on the EU constitution.

One of the key reasons why French voters rejected the EU charter at the end of May was concern about their economic future, prompted by a feeling that workers from the new eastern European member states would take their jobs.

Feeling the heat of a suspected No vote as early as March, French president Jacques Chirac used an EU summit at the time to secure public backing by the bloc for its social model.

However, the problem is that there is no clear consensus what the European social model is and how it is best protected.

The whole issue was encapsulated in the debate about a proposed EU law to open the market in services.

Proponents of the legislation, which include Britain, Ireland and many of the new member states, argue thatby using such liberalising legislation that more jobs will be created, economic growth will be helped and Europe's social model will be able to survive.

Opponents, such as France and Germany, argue that this type of legislation risks driving social protection and wages downwards.

Having shouldered the blame for the failure of the June summit to agree on the future funding of the EU, British leader Tony Blair will be keen to sell his vision of a social Europe based on pragmatic growth strategies to the rest of the EU at the informal summit.

One of his key arguments during and after the bitter budget summit was that more should be spent on research and development rather than on policies such as supporting farmers.

At the beginning on the British EU presidency, Mr Blair said "I believe in Europe as a project with a strong social dimension".

He also pointed out that the "social model" is not to be abandoned, but put up for re-organisation and adjustment.