EU working time directive deal goes to the wire

The head of parliament's negotiating team on the working time directive has voiced pessimism about a deal being reached.

German Socialist deputy Mechtild Rothe was speaking after conciliation talks between the European parliament and member states broke down on Tuesday night without agreement.

Negotiations resume on 1 April but Rothe rated the chances of a deal being brokered as no more than "five out of ten".

"It does not look good and it is a shame because parliament has made huge efforts to make a deal possible," she said.

Rothe said the main sticking points remain a demand from some member states to be allowed to be able to opt out from EU curbs on working hours.

An original agreement preserving the opt-out from the directive was rejected by parliament in December.

Talks on a possible compromise between the original deal and parliament's own version, which calls for the opt-out to be phased out within three years, started on Tuesday evening.

More than half of the EU's 27 member states, including the UK, have a deal allowing them to apply the 48-hour-week cap selectively.

Rothe, who leads parliament's 27-strong negotiating team, said, "Unfortunately, we went our separate ways last night without agreement. The problem is that council will not budge on the opt-out issue and this remains the main bone of contention between the two sides.

"We made it clear that we are willing to compromise but that we expect member states to do the same. So far, they have not shown a readiness to do so."

"There is, though, still a chance of a breakthrough when the talks resume next month. If we can make progress on the opt-out clause then I think the other issues can be quickly sorted out."

Rothe said it will be "extremely difficult" to find a solution in the required six-week period.

"Any agreement reached in the conciliation committee needs to be approved during the May plenary session at the latest," she said.

If there is no agreement, she said it was likely the directive will be "binned" and the commission would have to come forward with a new proposal.

Meanwhile, UK Tory MEP Philip Bushill-Matthews says the British Labour government "must instruct their own MEPs" to support the UK opt-out of the directive.

He said that scrapping the opt-out during a downturn was "nonsensical".

In December's vote many UK Socialist MEPs went against retention of the opt-out despite the British government's wish to keep it.

UK ALDE deputy Liz Lynne said, "The loss of the opt out of the 48 hour week would be a disaster for many working people trying to make ends meet in difficult economic times."

MEP Glenis Willmott, Labour group leader, said the opt-out should be maintained subject to a review after five years.

"At a time of financial crisis, workers need the flexibility to earn extra money," she said.

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