Economic and Social Committee
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is a body of the European Union (EU) established in 1957. It is a consultative assembly composed of employers, employees and representatives of various other interests. It is similar to the Committee of the Regions, with whom it shares the Delors building in Brussels as its seat.
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[edit] Role
It was established by the Treaty of Rome of 1957 in order to unite different economic interest groups to establish a Single Market. The creation of this committee gave them an institution to allow their voices to be heard by the European Commission, the Council and the European Parliament.
The role of the EESC is purely consultative. However, the Treaty of Maastricht considerably enlarged the Committee's domain. Its influence now extends to matters such as social policy, social and economic cohesion, environment, education, health, customers protection, industry, Trans-European Networks, indirect taxation and structural funds. It is questionable, however, whether this expanded scope truly gave it any more authority. On certain issues the EESC works in partnership with the Committee of the Regions.
[edit] Membership
Currently, EESC membership numbers 344. The number of members per EU state varies according to the population of each state (see table below for state-by-state membership figures). Members of the EESC are divided into three groups of equal number, employers, employees and a third group of various other changing interests such as: farmers, consumer groups, professional associations and so on. Members are appointed by the Council following nominations made by the government of the respective Member State. However, once appointed, the members are completely independent of their governments. The term for members is for four years, and is renewable. The President of the EESC is Dimitris Dimitriadis, elected in october 2006 for a term of two years
| Members | States |
|---|---|
| 24 | Germany, France, Italy, United Kingdom |
| 21 | Poland, Spain |
| 15 | Romania |
| 12 | Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Sweden, Czech Republic, Hungary |
| 9 | Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia |
| 7 | Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia |
| 6 | Luxemburg, Cyprus |
| 5 | Malta |
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official website
- List of Members
- Economic and social committee European NAvigator
- Group III Various Interests Group of the Economic and social committee Category 'Social economy'
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