Invitation letter by President Donald Tusk to the members of the European Council ahead of the Leaders’ Agenda discussion on education and culture
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Woordvoerder van de voorzitter van de Europese Raad i
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In preparing the Leaders’ Agenda that we discussed at our October European Council, we agreed with Prime Minister Löfven to use the working lunch at the Gothenburg Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth also to discuss education and culture.
I intend to start by inviting Prime Minister Löfven and Commission President Juncker to present an overview of their conclusions of the Social Summit. I will also like to share with you my ideas on how to take the social agenda forward in the European Council in December.
Then we will turn to education and culture, which a number of you have highlighted as important themes on which we should work together. As you know, the EU has limited resources and competences in these areas, and in line with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, the role of Member States and regions has to be ensured. However, the EU also has a good track record and concrete achievements, on which we can build and which we can broaden, like the Erasmus i programme.
Education and culture are the source of millions of jobs and growth in our Member States and tools to reduce inequalities. But let us not forget that they constitute one of the key pillars of our community. Because Europe is first and foremost a community of culture. A rich and powerful heritage makes us proud but above all it makes us who we are, Europeans. Without our cultural heritage Europe simply would not and could not exist. Therefore, it is our obligation to nurture culture and facilitate exchanges in the area of education so that our people, with their different cultural and historical backgrounds get to know each other better and inspire each other even more.
During our lunch, I want us to look at what we can do more in support of our education and culture policies, whether at EU level or through pilot projects driven by some of you. Many ideas have been brought to the table by you. They figure in the attached note, which will serve as a basis for our discussions. You will also have seen the important communication the Commission adopted this week.
In line with our new working methods, there will be no written conclusions from our debate, which will allow us to focus on ideas rather than on formal output. I will listen to all of you and use the discussion to put forward draft conclusions for our next regular meeting in December.
I look forward to seeing you on Friday.
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-Leaders' Agenda note on education and culture
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