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Council of Europe investigates public service provision

21 March 2013

Council of Europe investigates public service provision

tiny koxSP Senator Tiny Kox has been appointed rapporteur on ‘the state and public services’ by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), in which he leads the United Left Group. The forty-seven member states of the Council of Europe are bound by the treaty which forms the organisation’s basis to preserve ‘social cohesion’ by promoting the welfare of all citizens, countering inequality and limiting differences. The fear exists, however, that through ever-increasing marketisation and constantly growing cuts in public spending, this obligation will be less and less frequently met in Europe.

Senator Kox hopes to complete his investigations in the course of the year and present them to the parliamentary assembly in Strasbourg. This week he began his work by hosting a hearing in Paris. Fellow Dutch Senator Roel Kuiper of the Christian Union party informed the hearing about the results of the Senate parliamentary enquiry into privatisation and deregulation, which he chaired. The findings, adopted by the Senate and currently awaiting a response from the government – are exceptionally valuable elements in the broad enquiry into the consequences of ‘less government and more market’ for the provision of services within the members states of the Council of Europe.

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