Doc. 10630

1 July 2005

The role of ethical and solidarity-based financing and responsible consumption in social cohesion

Motion for a recommendation

presented by Mrs Iordache and others

1.       Changes in the international context, the European social model and the role of the state as guarantor of collective solidarity call for greater citizen commitment: this is the idea of a “welfare society”, reflecting shared responsibility between public authorities, citizens and markets.

2.       For example, national governments no longer have the resources to honour alone their international commitments (Kyoto agreements, ILO standards, millennium objectives, Council of Europe recommendations). They have to turn to their citizens in order to implement social and environmental politicise and ensure that the markets are a means of social cohesion and sustainable development and not a factor giving rise to inequalities.

3.       In practical terms, certain problems in Europe cannot be resolved without a change in our consumption and savings patterns. These include household over-indebtedness, obesity and poor diet, the financing of the third sector – including job creation by solidarity enterprises, services for the most vulnerable culture and environment, the influence of pension funds and employee savings plans on undertakings etc. Moreover, the fight against poverty in the southern hemisphere will be doomed to failure unless there are consumption practices which take account of the interests of workers in the south: fair trade, supported by European networks, is one example.

4.       Ethical and solidarity-based finance and responsible consumption are practical expressions of the shared responsibility of citizens in addressing these challenges. Having come onto the scene a number of decades ago, they have today taken on a European dimension, for example with the setting-up of the European Federation of Ethical and Alternative Banks (FEBEA) whose role is to underscore the political significance and the viability of alternative forms of savings and investment, without which the most vulnerable groups and community activities would be unable to secure funding.

5.       Because of its representative nature at political and institutional level, the Council of Europe can play a key role in fostering dialogue between public authorities and networks of citizens involved in alternative forms of savings and consumption. This is why the Parliamentary Assembly is putting forward the idea of a forum for dialogue and exchange on key issues and a fund for experiments and innovation in partnership with FEBEA, to encourage such approaches in countries where they are relatively unknown and to promote relevant responses to the above-mentioned challenges facing our societies.

Signed (see overleaf)

Signed ¹:

IORDACHE, Gratiela Denisa, Romania, NR

ALAY FERRER, Vicenç, Andorra, SOC

CHERNYSHENKO, Igor, Russia, EDG

DUPRAZ, John, Switzerland, ALDE

FERNÁNDEZ-CAPEL, Blanca, Spain, EPP/CD

HANCOCK, Michael, United Kingdom, ALDE

İNCEKARA, Halide, Turkey, EPP/CD

JÁUREGUI, Ramón, Spain, SOC

LALOY, Marie-José, Belgium, SOC

LINDINGER, Ewald, Austria, SOC

MARQUET, Bernard, Monaco, ALDE

VERMOT-MANGOLD, Ruth-Gaby, Switzerland, SOC

WOHLLEBEN, Verena, Germany, SOC

¹        SOC: Socialist Group

      EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party

      ALDE: Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe

      EDG: European Democratic Group

      UEL: Group of the Unified European Left

      NR: not registered in a group