Germany and Austria intend to press on at the Stockholm Summit with their request for a seven-year transition period for the free movement of Eastern European workers after the EU's enlargement.
According to an article in Die Presse, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel will tell their European counterparts that their acceptance of enlargement depends on this transition period.
Germany and Austria are expected to receive disproportionately high shares of migrant workers from Central and Eastern Europe after enlargement. However, enlargement should not lead to enormous westward migration, according to a recent Commission study.
The Commission paper outlines five different options for dealing with this issue, including various degrees of flexibility and differentiation among candidate countries. Die Presse says that the Swedish government would like to present a common EU position on labour movement by the end of its presidency in June.
Britain and the Netherland oppose the seven-year transition periods because they need labour immigration. Spain and Portugal, who were subjected to transition periods upon their accession to the European Community, oppose seven-year periods as too long.
