Social affairs chief Anna Diamantopoulou will next week unveil plans to lift obstacles to the free movement of workers in the EU and set up a true ‘European Labour Market’.

Date: 22/02/01

In a paper due to be approved by the full European Commission on Wednesday (28 February) she will outline how the Union can do more to encourage citizens to cross borders to find work. Lack of mobility is seen as a key failing of the bloc's labour market compared with the US. This is in part caused by language difficulties but also by barriers in pension, tax and benefit systems, says Diamantopoulou.