Brussels, 31/03/2010 (Agence Europe) - On 31 March, the Commission adopted the work programme for 2010. “The Moment to Act” programme aims to provide immediate responses to the economic and financial crisis but also propose long term solutions for tackling future challenges, such as globalisation, climate change and demographic ageing. The Commission affirmed that, “we have to draw the lessons and reshape our policies”. The work programme will be debated at the EP's plenary session on 20 April. The Party of European Socialists has already criticised it claiming that, “it falls short of the political courage needed to tackle the economic and financial crisis”. Instead of continuing with its “obsession” with fiscal consolidation, the Commission should prioritise “progressive growth policy” against unemployment, declared the president of the PES, Noul Nyrup Rasmussen.
To summarise, the Commission is basing its 2010 action around four main points:
1) fighting the crisis and supporting the social market economy. After having put forward the EU 2020 strategy, the Commission has announced several communications for the next few months on concrete implementation of flagship initiatives contained in this strategy, especially: the “digital strategy” (speeding up high speed internet instalment); industrial policy, research; education and youth; labour market modernisation; fighting poverty; energy and the sustainable use of resources. On this last point, the Commission has emphasised a programme for energy savings of 20% in the building and transport sectors. It also wants to review the directive on energy taxation, in an effort to tax energy products based on their energy content and their level of carbon emissions; relaunch the single market (follow-up to Monti report) and transport (new White Paper).
2) elaborate project for citizens. Several measures have been announced such as: a detailed action plan for implementing the Stockholm programme; a communication on EU policy in fundamental rights; a proposal on legal competency and the execution of decisions in civil and commercial law; a draft review of the working time directive; implementation of a reference framework in contract law; an analysis of obstacles to the free movement of citizens and proposals to clarify implementation of the directive on the posting of workers.
3) implementation of ambitious and coherent external policy programme. In addition to close collaboration with the future European External Action Service (EEAS), the Commission will be proposing to increase European representation in international financial bodies. It will also be presenting a “commercial strategy for Europe up to 2020”. Developments in accession negotiations will depend on the progress accomplished by the candidates (Croatia and Turkey), particularity with regard to, “respect for the rule of law”. In the development field, the Commission will propose an action plan in the perspective of the summit on the Millennium Development Goals for 2015.
4) modernising instruments and EU operation modes. The Commission will strengthen its instruments and mechanisms for “smart regulation”. It also wants, as from 2010, for all its initiatives that have significant repercussions, to be the subject of an impact analysis. It said that the analysis of the effects at a social level and on jobs could be reinforced. This year the Commission will also re-examine the whole raft of legislation on quality assessments to identify excessive charges, overlaps, shortcomings and incoherencies. Pilot exercises will begin in 2010 in four areas (environment, transport, employment/social policy and industrial policy). In the context of simplification, the Commission will present 46 simplification proposals over the next few years. Moreover, it also intends to withdraw a certain number of proposals. At a budgetary level, the Commission will be presenting a re-examination of the budget this year, in an effort to prepare the debate on the next multiannual financial framework. The Commission will lead wide-reaching consultations with stakeholders on the future of the budget in major EU spending areas, such as the CAP, Cohesion Policy and research. The results of these consultations will help to elaborate proposals by the Commission in 2011 on the next multiannual financial framework.
The work programme and annexes list all the different Commission initiatives being proposed this year and the full version is available in English and French at the Commission's website: (http: //ec.eu/atwork/programme/docs/cwp2010_fr.prdf). (H.B.)