Protection sociale et intégration économique européenne

Abstract

Social Protection and European Economic Integration In fhe future, the problems faced by the European schemes of social protection will become more acute: the ageing of the population and the growing health expenditures will place increased pressure on national schemes. At the same time, the completion of the single European market after 1992, could have implications for the conduct of social policy in member countries of the European Community (EC): for example, the impact of significant differences beetween social benefits on the movement of people and firms within the EC — countries with the least social protection would attract more businesses and, in the opposite direction, workers would tend to leave them. At a macro-economic level, these tendencies could make the difficulties of financing increasing social transfers more acute particulary in the currently most generous countries. As the future of European social protection depends crucially on those effects, a clear distinction of both constraints is needed for interpreting the « principle of subsidiarity » and for achieving a Social Europe.