The efforts made by the Turkish government to meet the political criteria set out in Copenhagen bear witness to real determination and efficiency, but now those efforts need to be stepped up with respect to social legislation and the rights of trade unions and associations.

In the social policy domain, the advances that have been made still fall short of the requirements set out in the Commission’s accession partnership document, which focuses mainly on labour law, the private and public sector, gender equality, health and safety in the workplace, the fight against discrimination, public health, development of the role played by the social partners in social, cross-sectoral, sectoral and company-level dialogue, and the promotion of employment.

Turkey’s membership will pose a major challenge to Europe in the years to come. Its accession will confirm that the European Union - thanks to its shared fundamental values of peace, freedom, democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights - is capable of extending its influence and drawing strength from the diversity of its Member States, while respecting the opinions and beliefs of each of its citizens.