Romana TOMC

Policy topics Romana TOMC is active on

What Romana TOMC has said (10)

• 2026-06-23 “(11:02:58 – 11:05:13): you very much for the floor. I will be speaking in Slovenian. Thank you very much to the rapporteur for the opinion. Thank you for presenting the starting points. When we talk about the introduction of the 28th regime and about a new legal forum, EU Inc, we have a historical opportunity. Yet at the same time, we also have a huge responsibility. Our goal must be clear. We have to help our innovative startups and small companies to become globally competitive. That is why in my amendments, I have highlighted the key principle of think small 1st. If we want this regulation to succeed, we must enable companies to convert into a new format EU Inc. In a simple manner, quickly, and with less bureaucracy at the entry gate. An excessive upfront regulation would bury this project before it came to life. However, and I would like to stress this specifically in this committee, that economic success must never be achieved at the expense of our workers or social standards. European social market economy must be based on balance. I would also like to stress that EU Inc. Should not and must not be used as a bypass of labor legislation or to decrease workers' rights. Everything that is not directly regulated within this regulation has to remain in exclusive competence of national legislation of member states. We will thus respect national traditions and prevent legal chaos in practice. Let me conclude. Even though I support every step in the direction of improving the single market, I remain fairly skeptical towards this project. I am not certain it will bring a lot of simplification. I believe that quite the contrary might happen. I do look forward to cooperation in drafting this opinion. It is imperative that we open the door to innovation and that we unburden our companies. At the same time, we have to maintain full security for our workers. Thank you.”
  Overall simplification of regulation in the EU
• 2026-06-23 “(10:42:25 – 10:44:12): Thank you, madam chair. I'm speaking on behalf of our colleague, Vivaldini. I'd like to start off by congratulating Di Rappoteur on an excellent job. Vocational training and education today are still suffering in terms of how they're perceived and also the support it receives. And the report quite rightly points to the need for vets because of a demographic transition and economic transition that we're going through. And there's industrial changes, and we also need to safeguard European manufacturing. So we support the rapporteur's approach, which is to call for greater prominence to be given to these training courses and for more support to go to the vets. But, of course, we need to take account of member state prerogatives here when it comes to education and training. And the European contribution could be to provide a platform for coordinating best practices and to integrate the proposal. Therefore, we submitted a number of amendments pointing to the need to improve dialogue between education system, families and so on. This is important so that young persons can be pointed in the right direction, make the right choices, but also to reduce the gap between skills and what the labor labor market needs. There are many people that are overqualified for the jobs they're doing when at the same time, many SMEs say that they struggle to find skilled persons. So that's the point we would make, and, I wish everyone, good work on this file. Thank you.”
  Focus of EU policy on education (shaping workers vs citizens)
• 2026-06-23 “(10:44:12 – 10:47:13): Thank you very much. And from the Greens, no. Right. I am shadow for the left, so I will shortly give my own comments. I agree with all the speakers about the importance, of these topics for Europe's future, well-being, economic vitality and employment as well as social and ecological sustainability. And of course, also for the skills agenda, because skills do not materialize from thin air. But really, if we want to be successful, with the skills agenda, we also need to recognize the importance of high quality vocational education and training systems to be able to reach, this goal. So in recent years, the importance and value of VET has received more recognition within the EU. But as has been mentioned, it is still not on an equal footing compared to more academic studies and pathways. So a lot of work remains to be done and I really think that European Parliament can have a very important role, in emphasizing this. Some points, I think it's important to stress. 1st is the importance of vocational education being inclusive that we also need to pay attention to the well-being of students and teachers. An inclusive and accessible vocational education and training also plays a a key role in supporting learners at risk of exclusion from the labor market. It promotes equal opportunities and also strengthens social cohesion. So this is important both from the point of view of young students, but also for older learners that are already in working life. So I want to stress the importance of individualized support and also the importance of special education professionals, psychologists and assistants. Secondly, increasing the attractiveness, social recognition, renumeration and working conditions of vet teaching profession is essential for recruiting and retaining qualified teachers, which is a precondition for a functioning education system. And thirdly, for us to be able to create a skills agenda that can really address skill shortages and our responses to the digital and green transitions, we also need to create an individual subjective right to lifelong learning, upskilling and reskilling as was proposed in the Drug Report on European Competitiveness and make sure that all vocational education qualifies and credentials should offer clear pathways for further studies so that we have no closed doors in our education systems. Also want to thank the rapporteur for a very good, report. Looking forward to our cooperation. So, we do not have the rapporteur from the cult committee present as I understand. Are there any other members that wish to take the floor under catch the eye on this point? Yes. Missus Morati, please. 1 minute.”
  Focus of EU policy on education (shaping workers vs citizens)
• 2026-06-23 “(11:07:51 – 11:10:11): You, madam chair. The ECR Group supports the EU Inc proposal. It's a specific instrument to strengthen European competitiveness and to reduce red tape, which is a break on startups in the single market. But we need to be clear when it comes to this proposal and what it should become. First of all, EU Inc must be an optional additional instrument without throwing up obstacles to national legal orders. It needs to continue to be possible to choose the national model instead of EU Inc if you believe that that's the best fit for your company. Secondly, labor law, Social Security, and salary fixing mechanisms need to continue to be a national competence. We don't want EU Inc to be a pretext to harmonize matters which are exclusive competence of member states. Thirdly then, it's of fundamental importance to counter and fight letterbox companies and wage dumping. All EU Inc companies need to notify country by country how many people they employ. That's a targeted measure so that we can avoid companies not paying Social Security contributions by hiding behind this letterbox company. Then fourthly, the representation of workers on the boards. We need to respect member states' national competencies where it exists. But if member states don't provide for this, then it's only right and proper that member states can continue to use their industrial relations. Then shareholding on the part of workers to align interests. Well, we welcome it, but it has to be voluntary, and it can't replace minimum mandatory minimum wage. In conclusion then, let me say that EU Inc can be a useful instrument to boost competitiveness, but we need to be careful that it does not become a pretext to circumvent existing legislation and labor laws across the EU. Thank you.”
  Overall simplification of regulation in the EU
• 2026-06-23 “(10:34:58 – 10:36:56): Thank you very much for the floor. Unfortunately, my colleague Angelika can't be with us today, and I will read her points on the boosting skills, in the union report. Thank you, rapporteur, for this very solid draft report, and thank you to all colleagues who have tabled amendments. The report already goes in a very good direction, but Angelica nevertheless submitted a number of amendments to reinforce a few key points. 1st, she wanted to put a stronger emphasis on dual vet systems and apprenticeships, which have proven highly successful in preparing young people for the labor market. 2nd, she believes we need to further strengthen the role of enterprises, especially SMEs, as key partners in vocational education and training. She also focused on making that more attractive through better progression pathways, lifelong learning opportunities, and more flexible learning formats, including micro credentials. In addition, she highlighted the importance of Erasmus plus mobility and the need to make participation easier, particular for SMEs and apprentices. She also believes that she we should bill, build on existing European and national structures and avoid creating unnecessary administrative burdens when implementing the union of skills. Finally, Angelica underlined the importance of skills mobility, recognition of qualifications, and the contribution of but to Europe's competitiveness and industrial transformation. She looks forward to the negotiations, and she is confident that together, we can deliver a balanced and ambitious report. Thank you.”
  Focus of EU policy on education (shaping workers vs citizens)
• 2026-03-11 “Answer given by President von der Leyen on behalf of the European Commission 22.5.2026 Written question Allegations of cooperation between Marta Kos and the former Yugoslav secret service were raised during the European Parliament’s hearing with the then Commissioner-Designate, prior to the European Parliament’s vote on the appointment of the Commission. In the hearing, the Commissioner-Designate rejected these allegations, stating that she had never been an informant or worked for the Yugoslav secret service. She has confirmed her position in this matter in the context of the Honourable Member’s question [1] . The Commission has no reason to revisit the issue that was addressed in the European Parliament’s thorough vetting process of the candidates who were subsequently appointed as Members of the Commission 2024-2029. [1] Cf pages 33/34 of the verbatim of 7 November 2024 of Commissioner-Designate Marta Kos’ hearing with the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs.”
  Rule of law and democracy in the EU (political compass) · Transparency requirements of EU institutions
• “Thank you very much for giving me the floor. I will be speaking in Slovene, my mother tongue. First of all, I would like to thank Niels King, who has really promoted this issue, also in the framework of our committee. I would also like to thank all speakers who have actually displayed all situations when it comes to demography, I know that it is a very complex issue. It is actually covering our birth and our death. It is a complex issue. This is why our approach needs to be a complex one, and it also needs to be mainstreamed into all of our policies. Today we have focused mostly on the labor market. How are we going to encourage women to be more active in the labor market? How can we facilitate their access to it? I do agree that our policies are important. However, I also believe that we need to address the key issue of demographic trends, which is that there is a low natality and our population is aging. In other words, what we need is to promote family life, To promote a higher mortality rate in Slovenia. And it's not all about money. It's also about our way of life and about our culture. Now, I would actually move on to another part of our lives, and that is retirement, I know that. Our pensions need to also be adequate. However, we have seen that our older people are facing existential issues because of lower pensions, and we do have also an institute of minimum wage. And I also believe that by analogy, we would also need to have a minimum pension in the EU or some safeguards that would allow us to remind member states to put their house in order.”
  EU policy on aging workforce and pensions
• “Thank you very much. We're talking about the 2027 budget guidelines today, and we don't really know what's going to happen tomorrow in the future. Given the instability in the world, it seems that there's never enough money. And that's why this budget needs to be very sensible and well planned. There are two things I wanted to mention. Firstly, transparency NGOs who receive resources from this budget, while at the same time they are involved in election campaigns. If we want to keep people onside, then we need to show that we can be transparent. The social fund should not be used on abortion. This is a fund that is intended for the most vulnerable people children with diseases, mental health. It shouldn't be used to finance abortion tourism. These rules should not be mixed with the prerogatives of the member states.”
  Regulation of NGOs in Europe
• “Thank you. Distinguished, ladies and gentlemen, we are facing not just economic and climate challenges, but also social in the Employment Committee. We want to see decisive support, uh, budgetary support to social policies, to deal with child poverty, mental health of employees, ageing, uh, population disparities between regions, increasing living costs. Cause all this is not exceptional, but it is everyday life for millions of Europeans. And all these challenges have to be addressed with sufficient financial measures. Europe cannot make steps ahead without supporting its people. Europe has to be the area of best social models, and the budget for 26 should be the instrument to put to this purpose.”
  EU expenditure on social policy
• “Thank you very much. Today's reality is not the same reality. We'll have three years down the line or further ahead, so we have to plan responsibly. European funds are there to iron out the disparities between the regions. Contributors are those who pay into the budget and the money has to go to them. But there's a weakness that is the administration. We don't need more obstacles. We need simplification. I would like to see a budget that didn't have preconditions, but with checks, so that fraud is made impossible. I'm rapporteur on the envy opinion, and I'm very concerned about the way the funds have been put together and the consequences for unpaid Paid appropriations, but I'm happy that we haven't forgotten geography in this document.”
  Conditions to access EU budget