5. We consider that the following raises questions of legal and political
importance, but make no recommendation for its further consideration at this stage:--
Department for Education and Employment
(17553)
10538/96
COM(96)462 |
Commission Green Paper on Education, Training and Research: The Obstacles to Transnational
Mobility. |
| Legal base: |
-- |
The Green Paper
5.1 The purpose of the Green Paper is to stimulate debate on the obstacles to
mobility within the Community for purposes of education, training and research.
5.2 The demand for mobility will grow, according to the Commission, which points out
that in 1987-88 3,000 students and 745 teachers benefited from mobility under the ERASMUS programme.
By 1995-96 these figures had grown to 170,000 and 14,000. But hindrances were encountered every
day in the implementation of Community programmes for education, training and research, leading to
lost opportunities, particularly for the young and the unemployed. Capital, goods and services move
more freely within the Union than people, the Commission says. It calls for reflection, discussion
and action from all concerned and says that it intends that the needs of nationals of a Member State
of the EC or EEA, as well as non-nationals who are legally resident in the EC on a permanent basis,
should also be taken into account.
5.3 The paper identifies obstacles to mobility in a number of areas:
--status of research trainees;
--compulsory tax and social security contributions;
--recognition, certification and validation of qualifications;
--the territorially restricted nature of national grants;
--socio-economic obstacles;
--administrative obstacles associated with the organisation of schools and universities;
--linguistic and cultural obstacles; and
--practical obstacles, including lack of information, lack of host companies and lack of
accommodation.
5.4 Nine lines of action are proposed for removing these obstacles:
a. according specific Community legal status to trainees on placements and to
voluntary workers in the European Community;
b. according equal fiscal treatment to all Community grant-aided research
trainees;
c. ensuring social protection for everyone benefiting from mobility as part of
their training (for instance, ensuring benefit entitlement for unemployed people undergoing training
in another Member State; and ensuring access to health care);
d. creating a European area of qualifications, by establishing systems of mutual
recognition of competencies and skills;
e. removing territorial restrictions on grants and national financing, with a
view to enabling transferability of national grants in the event of study abroad;
f. improving the situation of nationals of third countries legally resident in
the European Union with regard to training. It is suggested that this could be done by creating
a single binding legal instrument incorporating a set of common rules on the admission of third
country nationals;
g. reducing the socio-economic obstacles to mobility, by encouraging various
measures offering financial aid and support (allowances, grants, subsidies, loans, etc);
h. reducing linguistic and cultural obstacles, by such measures as preceding
training by linguistic and cultural preparation and an initiation to living and working practices
in the host country; and
i. improving the information available and administrative practices, for instance
by providing information over the Internet.
The Government's view
5.5 In his Explanatory Memorandum (dated 6 November) the Minister of State at the
Department for Education and Employment (Lord Henley) says:
"The UK Government welcomes the Green Paper's recognition that the key to helping to
remove obstacles is better information on systems in different Member States, including information
for those who arrange and participate in exchanges. However, the UK feels that attention should
initially focus on removing barriers to mobility encountered by those eligible to participate in
EU programmes. Actions limited to existing programmes, as well as any future proposals relating
to national social security and tax arrangements, would need to be consistent with the provisions
of the Treaties.
"Any proposal for a binding legal instrument covering rules on the admission of third
country nationals would be incompatible with the Treaties, and so would be unacceptable to the UK.
Further, the Government does not accept that the free movement provisions of the Treaty apply to
third country nationals. In the Government's view, these provisions apply to EC nationals only[9].
"The UK will play a full part in discussions of the issues arising from the Green Paper
over the coming months."
Conclusion
5.6 The obstacles to mobility identified by the Commission are, in
legislative terms, the responsibility of a number of different departments, both in the United
Kingdom and in other Member States. The Government's suggestion that a start should be made by
focusing on removing barriers encountered by potential participants in EU programmes could act as
a pilot scheme. It would have the advantages that the Commission should be able to pinpoint problem
areas and that it should be possible to establish without difficulty the bona fides
of the people concerned.
5.7 We consider that the Green Paper is of legal and political importance. As the
Commission intends to produce a White Paper after a six month consultation period on this Green
Paper, we prefer to await the results of the consultation and the deposit of the White Paper before
deciding whether to recommend debate. We are therefore not clearing this document at this stage.
9. We discussed the long-standing difference of view between the Commission and the
Government over whether the free movement provisions of the Treaty apply to third country nationals
in HC 48-xxix/HC 385 (1993-94) of 2 November 1994, paragraphs 11-14. See also ibid.
paragraphs 8-12 of the note by our Legal Adviser.
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