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The Council welcomes the bill’s declared aim of ensuring that the postal market works properly and consolidating the full accomplishment of the internal market of Community postal services. Thus in the Council’s view the transposition of the Community directive is another necessary step in developing a European internal postal market and especially in the process of seeking to reconcile the market’s gradual, controlled opening to competition with a guarantee of the provision of a good-quality universal postal service.The Economic and Social Council calls for users’ rights and interests to be protected at all times in the universal postal service bill. It also stresses the need to ensure that the postal service provides sufficient geographic coverage, respecting territorial co-hesion and integration objectives. And the Council expresses concern as to the effec-tive provision of the universal postal service to citizens living in rural areas.

The Council deems that affiliation should be the priority criterion for representation on the self-employed workers’ council, and proposes reducing the number of regions in which any one association needs to be established in order to be part of that coun-cil. Accordingly the Council considers that it may be necessary to reduce the number of Autonomous Regions in which associations must have a permanent office, and be-lieves in this respect that a balanced solution might be to require such a presence in ten regions, i.e. half of them plus one, including Spain’s two Autonomous Cities.

The 2009 Memorandum’s main forecasts and recommendations are as follows:A change in productive model: structural reforms need to be implemented in the productive sector, financial system, energy industry, labour market, educational sys-tem and new technologies and telecommunications sector, among others.Given the weaknesses of Spain’s growth pattern over the last expansive cycle, and with a view to altering it, it would be advisable not to forget the importance of the distributional pattern in achieving sustainable growth in the long term.Social policies: a need to rethink social policy and to address the issues coming up in the next few years, in which the challenges of demographic change will very likely be joined by the problem of long-term unemployment. With a view to the future, the steady aging of the population and changes in the la-bour market, especially as regards women’s accession to paid work, mean that re-tirement pensions are likely to grow at an increasing rate.

The working group to strengthen long-term economic growth is engaged in identifying measures to boost productivitygrowth in Finland. In the long term, growth in productivity will be the primary, and perhaps the only, driver of the nation's income growth.The background section of this interim report considers the meaning of GDP and labour productivity, sources of their growth and the importance of such growth. The analysis section is divided into six policy baskets: efficient and wellfunctioning markets, generation and utilisation of information, human and social capital and the labour market, productivity and efficiency in the public sector, business and private investments, and public investments.Finland’s success will depend on a high level of skills and innovative solutions in all sectors of society. The information society is an important instrument in creating opportunities to boost productivity and increase production, while taking account of ecological restrictions. Research and innovation policies and the education system must support the information society's development and place a greater focus on quality and internationality. In addition, the ability of Finns to capitalise on the opportunities offered by the more stringent international environmental policy must beenhanced. A modern broadband infrastructure is an imperative.In addition to the broad-based use of information and communication technologies (ICT), the ability to changepractices plays a key role in promoting public sector productivity. In the private sector, effective markets andcompetition form another important aspect, given that human and economic resources are most effectively targetedon market terms.The information society does not mean technology only. Unless our working methods are changed, the benefits ofnew technology may largely remain out of reach. In addition to information society skills, the adoption of newpractices can be supported by investments in citizens’ mental and physical well-being and in the prevention of social exclusion. Society's support network must provide support for individuals rather than organisations, within the context of change.The modernisation of the public sector's own working methods means, for example, directing the development ofelectronic services and systems on a centralised basis; more centralised and professional management of publicprocurement; and the reform of the structure of services and the administrative system. Innovative use of ICT willhelp achieve these targets.

The Social and Economic Council s view of sustainable developmentSustainable development can be realised if the broad concept of prosperity is applied. This concept impliesmore than material progress (higher standard of living, more purchasing power): it also encompasses socialprogress (well-being, social cohesion) and a good quality environment (spatial and environmental). What isinvolved is not only achieving all three aspects here and now but also elsewhere (internationally, with aparticular focus on developing countries) and later (for future generations).Sustainable development has many different dimensions to it; it is also a long-term process, and that meansit is fraught with uncertainties. It is unlikely that we will be able to meet the various criteria of sustainabilityall at once. We will have to choose, for example between the degree of environmental damage consideredacceptable and the price that society is prepared to pay for this (ecological versus economic sustainability). Achoice of this kind requires a political assessment. At its core, then, sustainable development is a sociallydriven process that involves searching, learning, weighing up the pros and cons, and commitment.

The Social and Economic Council has decided to base annual report this year on the theme of “productivity”. It is a theme that runs through the various advisory reports thatthe Council has issued in the past year. The Council considered the efforts needed to help young people with developmental disorders become loyal and productive employees; it observed the salutary effects of an effective employee diversity policy on productivity andother workplace matters; and it attempted to safeguard the health and long-term productivity of employees under difficult working conditions. Above all, however,productivity was the main theme of an advisory report in which the Council reappraised the Lisbon objectives set by the EU in 2000 and looked ahead to a new strategy that mustinspire Europe for the next decade.

The Economic Council is a cooperation body, chaired by the Prime Minister, where the ministers with the most influence on economic policy and representatives of the Bank of Finland and the principal economic interest groups discuss the main challenges of economic policy. Above all, the Council serves as a representative organ for collaboration between the Government and other bodies having direct economic influence, ensuring a regular, transparent and well-prepared platform for deliberations.The independent evaluation group appointed by the Prime Minister’s Office considers that formal and regular cooperation and communication on issues dealing with economic policy and society benefit both the nation at large and the parties involved in the dialogue. Long-term international and national challenges underline the importance of interaction between the Government and interest groups. Giving up collective incomes policy agreements at the central level highlights rather than diminishes the importance of regular and established dialogue between the Government and organisations. The evaluation group recommends, with a few specifications, that the Economic Council continue in its role as a representative body between the Government and interest groups, supporting the preparation of decision-making in a changing economic policy environment.In the second part of the evaluation project, Niko van Niekerk, former Secretary-General of the Socialand Economic Council of the Netherlands, presents his own assessment of the Finnish Economic Council by comparing it with other three European national institutions.

The Council welcomes the draft consumer credit agreements bill, transposing the European Parliament and Council directive on the same subject.The Opinion stress the bill’s importance, linked to the need to stimulate domestic consumption. The Council deems that all provisions which in one way or another promote responsible consumption and protect consumers’ rights may contribute to greater dynamism in economic activity and better market operation.The Opinion notes that it must be ensured, given that the bill applies to a wide range of goods intended for very different purposes, that the provisions are not detrimental to the speed and fluidity of normal legal and commercial interactions and consump-tion, always upholding the principle of guaranteeing consumer protection. Finally the Council recalls the need to ensure respect at all times for the principles and guarantees provided in the Organic Personal Data Protection Law, and to ensure that consumers are not left unprotected.

In November 2008, the Lower Chamber asked the SER to publish an advisory report on deregulation and liberalisation and safeguarding public interests. In particular, the Lower Chamber asked the SER to make recommendations on future deregulation or liberalisation in light of the lessons to be drawn from earlier operations. In the Council’s opinion, the discussion about regulation and competition should enter a new phase. The focus should be on a thorough consideration of the effects of various policy alternatives for public interests and for social prosperity. As a contribution to this, the Council has developed an impact assessment that could help in finding the right questions to ask. Asking the right questions at the right time, in addition to a systematic comparison of alternatives, could play an important role.