http://www.eubusiness.com <p><strong>Latest news about Social Policy in the European Union.</strong></p><p><img src="../unemployed-ec.jpg" class="image-right" alt="unemployment" height="128" width="128" hspace="10" vspace="5" />Technological change, globalisation and an ageing population are transforming Europe's societies. EU policies aim to keep pace with these trends, and help people adapt to changing circumstances. The renewed social agenda is aimed at creating more opportunities for EU citizens, improving access to quality services and demonstrating solidarity with those who are affected negatively by change.</p><p><strong>FACT SHEETS</strong></p><p><strong>General Information</strong></p><ul><li><a href="/Social/progress/ ">PROGRESS 2007-2013</a></li><li><a href="../social-observatory">The European Observatory on the Social Situation and Demography</a></li></ul><p><strong>Funding</strong><ul><li><a href="../esf">European Social Fund (ESF)</a></li><li><a href="../esf-activities">ESF Activities: Businesses undergoing change</a></li></ul><p><strong>Supporting Business</strong></p><ul><li><a href="../spe">A European Private Company Statute</a></li></ul><p><a href="../contacts"><strong>EU Social Policy Contacts</strong></a></p> <hr /> <h2>LATEST NEWS</h2> daily 1 2007-01-02T13:22:44Z http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/netherlands.f6j Ten eastern European countries protested to the Dutch government Tuesday about an anti-immigrant website by a right-wing party, urging The Hague to reject what they branded a "deplorable initiative". No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Netherlands discrimination Internet politics Headline2 2012-02-14T14:57:35Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/finance-public-debt.f5h Scenes of burning buildings and street battles in Athens offer a violent reflection of growing weariness among Europeans at the austerity-first philosophy sweeping Europe. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Finance Greece FOCUS social debt public 2012-02-13T14:18:14Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/netherlands.f53 Ambassadors from 10 eastern European states are to send a protest letter to the Dutch parliament over the website of a far-right party, a Polish embassy spokesman said on Monday. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. politics discrimination Netherlands Internet 2012-02-13T18:05:01Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/france-health-women.f2h The European Commission urged governments on Thursday to tighten controls of medical devices after faulty French-made breast implants sparked a global health scare. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. implants France health Headline2 women 2012-02-09T21:27:41Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/topics/single-market/eu-foundation The European Commission has presented a proposal for a European Foundation Statute in order to facilitate the cross-border activities of public benefit purpose foundations and make it easier for them to support public benefit causes across the EU. No publisher eub2 Single Market SMEs Social 2012-02-08T21:35:56Z Link http://www.eubusiness.com/topics/single-market/foundation-2 The European Commission has presented a proposal for a European Foundation Statute to make it easier for foundations to support public benefit causes across the EU. No publisher eub2 Single Market SMEs Social 2012-02-08T21:49:13Z Guide http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/belgium-social.eld Belgian trade unions on Tuesday called a general strike for January 30, the date of a summit of European Union leaders in the capital Brussels. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Belgium strike summit social 2012-01-17T17:45:13Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/france-court-islam.eib Racehorse billionaire and Islamic spiritual leader the Aga Khan is contesting a divorce settlement that awarded his ex-wife a record 60 million euros ($77 million), a French judicial source said Thursday. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2012 AFP. All other Copyright 2012 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. France court divorce Islam racing people AgaKhan 2012-01-12T13:12:04Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/latvia-politics.eab Lawmakers in European Union member Latvia rejected a motion Thursday to enshrine Russian as the second official state language after Latvian in the ex-Soviet Baltic state's constitution. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2011 AFP. All other Copyright 2011 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. minority language Latvia Russian politics 2011-12-22T16:01:33Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/israel-arab.e7e EU ambassadors in Israel are concerned over Israel's treatment of its Arab minority and about poor prospects for relaunching peace talks with the Palestinians, according to a working paper disclosed by daily newspaper Haaretz on Friday. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2011 AFP. All other Copyright 2011 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Arab Israel minority 2011-12-16T14:59:43Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/topics/social/social-business-2 Social businesses are companies that have a positive social impact and address social objectives as their corporate aim rather than only maximising profit. It is a growing sector in Europe, already representing 10% of all European businesses and employing over 11 million paid employees. While these businesses often receive public support, private investment via funds that invest in social entrepreneurs remains vital to their growth. However, such specialised social investment funds are rare or are not large enough. Cross-border investment in such funds is unnecessarily complicated and expensive. With today's proposal for a Regulation, the Commission lays the foundations for a strong European market for social investment funds. It introduces a new "European Social Entrepreneurship Funds" label so investors can easily identify funds that focus on investing in European social businesses. The approach is simple: once the requirements defined in the proposal are met, managers of social investment funds will be able to market their funds across the whole of Europe. To get the label, a fund will have to prove that a high percentage of investments (70% of the capital received from investors) is spent in supporting social business. Uniform rules on disclosure will ensure that investors get clear and effective information on these investments. No publisher eub2 SMEs Social 2011-12-07T18:21:55Z Guide http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/finance-economy.dvy Greece's leading social security fund IKA needs three billion euros ($4 billion) in loans to plug a 200-million-euro deficit in 2011 and manage pension payments in the next two years, its director said Monday. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2011 AFP. All other Copyright 2011 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Finance pensions Greece debt public economy 2011-12-05T18:43:42Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/budget-economy.dli Poorer European nations say they are winning the battle against Brussels technocrats for control of hundreds of billions of euros in vital EU grants due to be paid out in the next decade. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2011 AFP. All other Copyright 2011 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. social budget economy 2011-11-20T10:38:51Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/lifestyle-us-social.dka France's reputation for chauvinism took a hit Thursday from an opinion poll that revealed that only 27 per cent of its people think French culture is better than all others. No publisher eub2 Text and Picture Copyright 2011 AFP. All other Copyright 2011 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable. Lifestyle US offbeat culture social POLL 2011-11-18T10:22:47Z News Item http://www.eubusiness.com/topics/living-in-eu/migrants-family The European Commission has launched a public debate on the right to family reunification of third-country nationals living in the EU. Depending on the outcome of the consultation, the Commission will decide whether any policy follow-up is necessary – such as setting up clear guidelines, modifying the current rules or leaving the legislation as it is. No publisher eub2 Social Living & Working in EU 2011-11-17T22:25:58Z Guide