Brussels, 13/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 13 July, the EU Council of Ministers took an important step in the implementation of the new EUROPE 2020 strategy for jobs and growth, by adopting a recommendation establishing new broad guidelines for the economic policies of the member states and of the Union. The recommendation, together with a draft decision on guidelines for employment policies (adoption of the decision on employment policies is scheduled for October), forms “integrated guidelines” for structural reforms which will have to be carried out over the next few years under the new strategy.
On the basis of these integrated guidelines, member states will draw up national reform programmes which will set out in detail the actions to be undertaken. Particular emphasis will be placed on the efforts needed to meet the national targets, and on measures to remove the bottlenecks that constrain sustainable growth at the national level. The European Council will assess annually the progress made at both EU and member state level under the 2020 strategy. Macro-economic, structural and competitiveness developments, and also overall financial stability, will be examined simultaneously. (L.C./transl.rt)