Not very popular but indispensable. It is now the turn of the internal market. In the next few days, the European Commission will approve its communication on the relaunch of the European single market because it is an essential economic and also political element of the future EU. In the beginning, this was the priority objective: the term common market was synonymous with the EEC. It is, however, a complex affair and contains a twofold risk:
a) There are misgivings, even a certain distrust, on the part of citizens with regard to the big borderless market. In his report “New Strategy for the European Single Market” Mario Monti recognised this fact and pointed it out. Citizens forget the immeasurable advantages of the free movement of persons, goods and services, and sometimes see only the disadvantages or the claimed disadvantages. In his investigation and analysis, Mr Monti indicated that “there is real opposition to the single market. Consumers often do not see the benefits of it”;
b) The less apparent interests at play. Sometimes it is in the interest of goods manufacturers to limit the free movement of products in an effort to avoid competition and some of the labour force sometimes sees that there is a risk to job stability in the single market.
Strengthening and improving. The conclusion of the Monti report was clear - “the single market has never been so unpopular. Nonetheless, it has never been so necessary”. Why necessary? Because it represents the indispensable basis for all common European policy achievements, such as the single monetary area. What would be the significance of the CAP without the free movement of food products? What would be the significance of the Schengen area, which has got rid of border controls for persons, if goods were being controlled? And what would it mean for industrial cooperation if customs duties still existed? The proof is there; nonetheless, so are the misgivings. The younger generation appears to have forgotten to what extent getting rid of the borders has changed the lives of everyone and yet the people who are not part of this enterprise dream of only one thing - joining it. Mr Monti's conclusion was clear: there is a lot that needs to be corrected and improved, yet the innovations must not go in the direction of reducing the achievements but rather of reinforcing the single market and better coordinating the different aspects of a genuine single market by taking into account both the opening up of the markets and the social dimension (education, training). Mr Monti disagreed that there was a conflict between the single European market and national social rights. The principle of the common market must be clarified and improved but it must be safeguarded and extended to new fields: a common energy market would enhance competitiveness throughout European industry and help develop new technologies.
A few essential orientations. Energy is just one example. The new Single Market Act prepared by the Commission under the guidance of Michel Barnier will be submitted to the Council and the European Parliament. Its structure, essential objectives and gradual implementation were partly discussed last month in EUROPE 10207. Other early indications from some of the press were unreliable. The document will propose a Community Act, which includes an action plan to be implemented as soon as possible (at the end of 2012 for the most part?), with commitments on application deadlines covering multiple aspects, including those on which the positions of the member states do not yet entirely coincide, such as the linguistic regime for the European patent and partial harmonisation of corporation tax (or at least the calculation of the basic tax rate).
The public services of general interest section will be openly tackled, whilst taking into account the opportunities provided by the Lisbon Treaty which are, in this area, clear and positive. The Commission president has in this connection announced a specific document based on Article 14 of the new treaty and Protocol 26. In a more general sense, we are expecting an effort to be made to coordinate the way in which the single market works with the broad guidelines of EU industrial policy, given that this notion, previously disparaged, has now entered the Community vocabulary. There may also be the question of European aid for industrial innovation, as well as (and why not?) new technical standards, for example, for electric cars. The idea of Eurobonds to finance cross-border projects of common interest might also be discussed. We will have to wait and see.
We can understand the expectations of the political and economic communities because the document will define at Community level, essential orientations and procedures for the future of Europe.
(F.R./transl.fl)