Plan to boost student rights under threat

Date: 02/11/00

By John Shelley

A ROW over plans to ensure students retain social security rights when they travel to other EU member states is threatening to scupper a deal designed to make it easier for Union citizens to study anywhere in the bloc.

Diplomats say objections from the UK and Denmark to references in the proposal to employment benefits, health care, taxation and social support could derail France's attempts to get the package agreed before its presidency ends in December.

Even though the measures would take the form of recom-mendations which would not be legally binding, diplomats say some member states are unwilling to even discuss policy in areas which have until now been the sole preserve of national governments.

Paris will have its last opportunity to clinch agreement on the student mobility plan at a meeting of Union education ministers next Thursday (9 November). But its chances of doing so appear slim. "For certain countries, just mentioning social security or taxation is a taboo," said one diplomat.

The proposals are designed to make it as easy for someone to undergo training or carry out voluntary work in another member state as it is in their home country. They would, for example, commit member states to ensuring that their schools and colleges recognise qualifications from other Union countries and the educational value of a stay abroad.

But the most controversial elements are provisions which call for the removal of administrative and financial hurdles, including steps to ensure that students do not lose health care rights, employment or other benefits.

The debate is further complicated by the need for Paris to come up with a formula acceptable to MEPs, who are keen to retain the references to social security and taxation.

A row over plans to ensure students retain social security rights when they travel to other EU Member States is threatening to scupper a deal designed to make it easier for Union citizens to study anywhere in the bloc.