I forbindelse med Amsterdam-traktaten, hvor jeg selv deltog i forhandlingerne stort set frem til traktatens underskrivelse, præciseredes målene for socialpolitikken, og traktaten indrømmer EU et selvstændigt ansvar på dette felt.
In Amsterdam, as I remember specifically, since I was one of the negotiators of the Treaty almost up to the end, we expanded the definition of the objectives of social policy within the Treaty and the Community was granted its own areas of competence, complementary to those of the Member States.