The Party of European Socialists (PES) today adopted a major report on youth unemployment. The report calls for the immediate introduction of a binding European Youth Guarantee, and the “ringfencing” of 10 billion euros of EU structural funds to tackle the issue.
The report sets out 20 action points to address the problem of youth unemployment.
PES President Sergei Stanishev stated that; “the scourge of unemployment blights the lives of 5.5 million young people in Europe today. This is a shocking and painful number. With this report, the PES is making it clear that establishing a way of implementing our solutions to the problem is the absolute priority of the PES. It is our obligation”.
PES General Secretary Philip Cordery added that; “The European Youth Guarantee is based on a simple social democratic principle – when the citizen is in trouble, the state must help. The youth guarantee, which exists already in Austria and Finland thanks to social democratic governments, is working. It needs to be writ large at EU level. The PES will be the champion of the concept of an EU youth guarantee”.
The report will be handed over to the Presidents of the European Institutions ahead of the 1 March European Council.
The PES also announced that a campaign on youth unemployment – “Your future is my future, a Youth Guarantee Now!” will be the major PES campaign for 2012, with the official launch scheduled for the end of April.
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