SPD debates Europe’s prospects after Brexit

Many politicians in the EU are still in shock. After the British vote for Brexit, they are worried: what happens next in Europe? Is Brexit the beginning of the collapse of the EU? Or is the crisis also an opportunity for a new beginning?

SPD program conference: answers from Sigmar Gabriel

SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel wants answers to this on Saturday at the Europe program conference in Berlin give. The speech by the party chairman is one of the most important conference points. It should be entitled “Future Europe: the European project in stormy times – social democratic perspectives for a new start”.

SPD executive board member Martin Schulz, the President of the European Parliament, will introduce the issue.

Refugee policy between humanity and securing skilled workers

The Social Democrats will then discuss various European topics in four parallel workshops. Led by Federal Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection Heiko Maas, a workshop will debate the connections between the refugee issue and labor market policy in Europe. This workshop is called “Vanishing point Europe / Europe labor market – between humanitarian responsibility and securing skilled workers”. Experts discussing this include Petra Bendel from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and Steffen Angenendt from the Science and Politics Foundation.

Another workshop led by Federal Environment and Construction Minister Barbara Hendricks will address the challenges of climate policy under the heading “Socially fair and economically sensible – our path to climate neutrality”. Professor Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker, co-president of the Club of Rome, Regine Günter, general director of the WWF and Stefan Körzell, member of the executive board of the DGB, will contribute their expertise to this debate.

Responsibility for Europe and the world

In the workshop “Our responsibility for Europe and the world” Niels Annen, the foreign policy spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group, Bärbel Dieckmann, the president of Welthungerhilfe and Knut Fleckenstein, the deputy leader of the Social Democrats in the EU Parliament, will discuss. The workshop “What happens after Brexit?” is particularly exciting. care for. Udo Bullmann, chairman of the SPD representatives in the EU Parliament, Axel Schäfer, SPD parliamentary group deputy in the Bundestag, and Professor Gesine Schwan, chairwoman of the SPD Basic Values ​​Commission, are debating here.

At the end, the results of the program conference will be summarized under the heading “Europe in transition: challenges and social democratic answers”. These should then flow into the SPD’s further perspective debate.