CESI welcomes the EU's new Internal Security and Preparedness Union Strategy

CESI underscores the crucial role of public servants in implementing and securing envisaged measures under the Strategies on the ground. Nurses and healthcare workers, police officers, firefighters, judicial staff, military personnel and civil protection agents – they all stand on the frontlines of Europe's response to crises.

The EU Internal Security Strategy – labelled ProtectEU – outlines a comprehensive vision for internal security in the EU, built on enhanced threat awareness, greater cross-border cooperation, and upgraded capabilities for law enforcement and judicial systems. The strategy rightly recognises the evolving threat landscape, including cybercrime, foreign information manipulation, radicalisation of youth, and the weaponisation of migration.

For CESI, the implementation of the both ProtectEU and the Preparedness Strategy underlines the need for sustainable investments in the resources and personnel of many public services, including in the nurses and healthcare workers, police officers, firefighters, judicial staff, military personnel and civil protection agents. The implementation of this strategy must go hand-in-hand with better working conditions, continuous training, and robust social dialogue with workers and their unions.

Paloma Repila of the Spanish SATSE trade union, President of CESI’s Expert Commission on Health Services, commented: "European crisis preparedness is impossible without nurses and a resilient, well-supported healthcare workforce. The lessons learned from the pandemic must translate into concrete policies supporting highly qualified healthcare personnel."

CESI also highlights the importance of resilience and trust as outlined in the strategies. Public sector workers are not only enforcers of security and preparedness but also providers of care and stability. Their commitment underpins citizens' trust in democratic institutions. CESI supports the strategy's call for greater cooperation between EU agencies and Member States in addressing security challenges that transcend national borders.

Equally, the strategies' emphasis on the protection of the most vulnerable – children, minorities, and the elderly – resonates with CESI’s core values of inclusion and social justice. However, the proposed legislative and operational upgrades will only succeed if workers on the ground feel safe, prepared and supported in their missions.

CESI especially welcomes the vision of a better coordination across policies and Member States, with mainstreaming of security and preparedness across all EU policies, including health, education, digital and social services. The linkage between the Internal Security Strategy and the Preparedness Union Strategy is essential and timely.

The past years have shown that security threats are no longer confined to traditional domains. The COVID-19 pandemic, climate-induced disasters, foreign cyberattacks, and hybrid threats require a cross-sectoral and "whole-of-society" approach – a point emphasised in both strategies.

CESI urges the EU institutions and Member States to involve public service workers and their representatives in the roll-out of both strategies from the outset. CESI Secretary General Klaus Heeger said: “The hands-on experience of public services and their personnel is indispensable in designing effective preparedness and security measures. A secure Europe is not just built through new technologies and legislation – it is upheld every day by the commitment of public service workers.“

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