Brussels, 23/03/2009
A trade union delegation composed of John Monks and the leaders of the Belgian trade unions will meet, on Monday 23 March, Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy and the deputy prime ministers, as well as European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, to assess the European Summit on 19 and 20 March and to prepare the G20 in London.
John Monks declared: "The time has come to take action. We can no longer be content with a laissez-faire attitude. We regret that the European Summit on 19 and 20 March failed to express the political will to develop a coordinated and ambitious response to this crisis. We need to remember that the market is not self-regulating. Social protest movements are multiplying, reflecting the anxiety that is spreading among European citizens. Leaders can no longer ignore the facts. We cannot leave Europe's workers in the lurch."
See also the ITUC press release: Trade unions to G20: Half measures will not fix broken global economy.