European social policy has evolved significantly since the late 1980s, when the idea of a social dimension to the European Union emerged onto European policy agendas. During the early 1990s, the common points of departure for these discussions were the concepts of subsidiarity and proportionality, both of which underlined the limited competence of the European level to proceed in this field. Today, after the introduction of the Lisbon Strategy and the open method of coordination (OMC), systematic attention has been focused on the social aspects of European integration at the European level. Clearly, major shifts in mental models, ideas on European social policies, strategic objectives, and policy processes have occurred over these years.

Signs of this new political reality abound: first, virtually all recent European Union (EU) presidencies have organised at least one high-level event dealing with the different dimensions of a social Europe, indicating the importance of the new political reality. Second, the regular use of the concept of the European social model (ESM) in different contexts underlines a common ground of policy making towards uniting different welfare regimes. Third, the Social Protection Committee (SPC), based on Article 144 of the Nice Treaty, has been established, to share information among Member States on issues of contemporary significance and on defining strategic objectives. Here the cooperation between the Commission and Member States clearly has shown some potential. Finally, the role of the European Parliament is becoming more significant and visible due to the extension of codecision making and a more articulated position building. Thus the social dimension of the EU can no longer be ignored.

This chapter aims to further clarify some key issues debated in previous chapters, and to draw together some policy conclusions. (Chapter Thirteen has already summarised the comparative results.) We enter the debate on the ESM concept to assess its potential usefulness in European social policy debates, and identify at least 10 of its dimensions. The chapter ends with policy conclusions on the question of whether we need a new balance in social policy between the Member States and the EU.

The European social model

As previous chapters have shown, European integration has never been exclusively motivated by the interests of the Member States or other European and national actors.