News

On 6-7 February, a session of the European Convention on the future of the EU took place in Brussels. During the session, conclusions of Working Group IX on Social Europe were presented, members of the Convention debated on how to enhance the coordination of EU social policy. At the two-day-long session of the Convention, first draft articles of the forthcoming Constitutional Treaty prepared by the Presidium were presented as well as the role of regional and local authorities in European politics was discussed. Commenting upon the issues debated at the European Convention, Representative of the Lithuanian Government at the Convention, MFA Undersecretary Rytis Martikonis emphasised that not only the principles of free market should be important in the European Union, but so should be the appropriate functioning of the social security system. The session of the Convention also discussed the possibility of wider application of qualified majority voting in addressing the issues of social sphere. "Each case should be looked into separately during this discussion in view of the sensitivity of social issues”, Undersecretary Martikonis noted.