European social policy is repeatedly discussed with a focus on institutions and policy areas, and it is often criticized for being underdeveloped or for having been developed late. However, an important aspect is frequently overlooked: it is also about an order policy that assigns roles to various actors. While questions regarding social insurance, pension funds, etc., are crucial in the discussion about the European social model, it is equally important to examine the roles assigned to soft policies and hard policies, as well as how different actors and responsibilities should be distributed. Foundations for this have already been laid in the earlier history of the EU. Here, the invoked national traditions also play a particularly significant role.