CEEP certainly welcomes the Commission’s willingness to act and to propose measures to relieve the pressures on the public finances in times of crisis. Many of these, especially the financial incentives from the EU side can really contribute to the success.

However CEEP deems it necessary to warn the Commission against the deus ex machina approach when it comes to public-private partnerships. It is true that PPPs holds a big potential and CEEP is prepared and willing to cooperate with the private sector. But risks should also be taken into account and quite a recent case of a failed PPP in the public transport system in London is a clear example of how such partnerships, when private partner is faced with big financial difficulties, can cost double the public budget, not to mention the deterioration in the quality of public services.

Ralf Resch, the General Secretary of CEEP, also stressed: “It is not acceptable that public enterprises are not being consulted the same way as private ones when it comes to the
public-private partnerships. This surely is not the level playing field which the Commission wants to guarantee. After all, the public side is always ultimately responsible for public services, and has to cope with the consequences when something goes wrong in such partnerships.”

For further information, please contact:
Valeria RONZITTI, Director - tel. +32 (0) 2 219 27 98
CEEP gathers enterprises and organisations from across Europe, both public and private, at national, regional and local level, which are public employers or providers of services of general interest. CEEP members employ a quarter of the EU workforce; CEEP is one of the three European Social Partners.