Upcoming Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU
Under the motto “A strong Europe in a changing world“, for its 8th time, the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU will kick-off on 1 July, thus marking the end of the outgoing Polish semester.
The Danish EU Presidency will work for a strong and resolute EU that takes responsibility for its own security and for strengthening its competitiveness. This calls for the EU to match words with action and deliver on the challenges it faces. The green transition is essential to building a more secure and competitive Europe. With 2 overarching priorities: A “secure Europe” and a “competitive and green Europe”.
A look at the key priorities
As regards social affairs , the Danish Presidency will follow up on the pilot project on the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS). It will also address challenges and explore solutions related to free and fair movement, including conditions for posted workers. It will also follow the EU Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at Work 2021–2027 with focus on strengthening health and safety measures for workers. This includes, as much as possible, advancing the 6th revision of the Directive on carcinogens, mutagens and reprotoxic substances at work. The Danish will also contribute building on the new Pact for European Social Dialogue, and work to strengthen dialogue among social partners.
On the European Competitiveness Compass, the Competitiveness Council will pursue actions that bolster the EU’s long-term competitiveness. For the Danish Presidency, strengthening Europe’s economic foundations is crucial to boost resilience, secure stable supply chains, improve economic security, reinforce the EU’s global position, and create growth opportunities through research-based innovation.
In the area of energy and environment, among the other priorities, the Danish Presidency will start from championing the green transition as a key driver, focusing on decarbonising industry and establishing the right framework conditions to ensure access to essential raw materials and affordable energy. The agenda will include focus on regulatory simplification and better regulation in the EU to ease daily operations for businesses and other stakeholders.
For the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council, the Danish will increase efforts to strengthen and future-proof Europe’s transport sector, digital infrastructure, telecommunications, and the internal energy market.
Flagship usch as the Green Deal and the Clean Industrial Deal will be continued. This include a continued focus on ensuring a sufficient production of clean, affordable energy, and working towards an EU that is independent of Russian energy.
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FIEC attends ANCE-Piemonte and Val d’Aosta assembly
On 19 June, FIEC President, Piero Petrucco, and Director General, Domenico Campogrande, intervened in the Annual Assembly of ANCE-Piemonte and Val d’Aosta, a regional affiliate of our Italian member federation ANCE.
The main focus of the assembly was “affordable housing”, a good opportunity to speak about the opportunities and challenges raised by EU initiatives such as the Renovation wave, the revised Energy Perfomance of Buildings Directive or the EU Taxonomy for sustainble investments.
The on-going works regarding the forthcoming “Affordable Housing Strategy” were also part of the exchanges, including its various components : permitting procedures, costs of products and materials, the productivity of the sector, rents, financing, etc.
But overall, this event has been extremely useful and important to explain the reasons and the need for a strong presence in Brussels, as well as to bring the EU closer to the regional and local level, with clear examples of the direct added value that it provides.
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FIEC participates in ELA joint Management Board and Stakeholders’ Group meeting
EU-OSHA study on labour identification cards and occupational safety and health
On 12 June, the European Agency for Safety and Health at work (EU-OSHA) published a study on “Labour identification cards and their use for occupational safety and health (OSH)”. This discussion paper focuses on labour ID cards in the construction sector and how they can support OSH compliance.
The study finds out that labour ID cards can serve many functions relevant to OSH: to document OSH education and professional qualification, to register working hours, to control access to building sites. The study stresses that tools, such as labour ID cards, could be one of the factors to explain a decline of non-fatal and fatal accidents in the construction sector between 2012 and 2022.
However, there is a lack of knowledges and data on the direct impact of social ID cards on OSH. The paper also explores how the use of the labour ID cards is part of the digitalisation of the construction sector and can at the same time improve OSH and have “unintended ethical consequences”.
In the framework of the SIDE-CIC project, FIEC contributed to this discussion paper.
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Video of the Month:
Message by EU Commissioner Roswall addressing FIEC Annual Conference
Ahead of the launch of the European Commission’s “Water Resilience Strategy” last 5 June, and during the FIEC Annual Conference held on 16 May, in Athens, under the theme “Building Tomorrow: Solutions for Water Resilience and Blue Infrastructure”, EU Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience & a competitive Circular Economy, Jessica Roswall, delivered her video-message to all speakers, participants and our construction community as a whole.
On water challenges and risk mitigation we convened on how the construction industry can voice its proposals on specific measures and actions. And this approach is mirrored in her address to FIEC. Commissioner Roswall said that “Using water more efficiently is a strategy for the environment, the economic strength and industrial competitiveness. I sincerely thank FIEC for its valuable contribution to our call-for-evidence […] that has identified the most urgent needs. Europe is investing in water through cohesion policy funds, national recovery plans and Horizon 2020, among others. The construction sector is essential to delivering solutions, and the EU can only achieve results with its partnership.”
We thank the Commissioner for this very valuable contribution and for her positive inspiring remarks shared in this video. We are keen to share our outcomes, our messages and the solutions that construction sector can provide with all the concerned stakeholders, and we will continue dialoguing with the Commissioner.
EU Takes Action on Water Resilience
After the 2024 European Elections, water has been defined as a strategic priority, and FIEC supports this development. The EU institutions, namely the European Parliament and the European Commission, have been working to promote the new “European Water Resilience Strategy“, published on 4th June, 2025. The initiative aims to contribute to a resilient water management in the EU and targets the Member States to focus on effective implementation of existing water legislation.
The construction sector’s expertise is key for developing pragmatic solutions. Through sustainable infrastructure and innovative water management systems, the industry can help reduce strain on water resources and enhance resilience across Europe.
FIEC is Ambassador of the #WaterWiseEU campaign launched by DG Environment of the European Commission. The common goal is to raise awareness of the increasing stress placed on Europe’s water systems and to spotlight the many available solutions to tackle issues related to water.
FIEC Annual Conference – Press Release: link and “EU Water Resilience Strategy“: link
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