Brussels, 28/02/2012 (Agence Europe) - The alarm bells have sounded. The European Council should urge member states to focus their efforts on implementing the budgetary and macro-economic reforms if they plan to reach the targets they set themselves in 2010 with their approval of the EUROPE 2020 strategy. “Efforts undertaken to date remain insufficient to meet most of these targets”, say draft conclusions of the summit due to take place on Thursday 1 and Friday 2 March, a copy of which has been obtained by EUROPE. European leaders will take stock of what has been done since their informal meeting at the end of January, which focused on measures to stimulate growth both nationally and across Europe (see EUROPE 10542). According to the European Commission's recent spring forecasts, growth will be zero in the EU in 2012, and, in the eurozone, will contract slightly (by 0.3%).
The European Council will take on the five socio-economic priorities set out in the EUROPE 2020 strategy: pursuit of differentiated, growth-friendly, fiscal consolidation; restoring normal lending to the economy; promoting growth and competitiveness; tackling unemployment and the social consequences of the crisis; and modernising public administration. However, “while important measures have been taken by all member states, reforms in certain areas are lagging behind and implementation is uneven”, the draft conclusions state. Moreover, the Commission has recently flagged up “certain challenges and potential risks raised by macro-economic imbalances in some member states”. Twelve countries, including France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, but not Germany, will undergo in-depth investigation of the imbalances observed (see EUROPE 10553).
European leaders underline the importance of continuing with the consolidation of national public finances, with those countries with fiscal space allowing automatic stabilisers to operate fully. The two proposals completing the revised stability pact are expected to be adopted by June (see related article). Those on capital requirements (Basel III directive) and financial instruments (MiFID II package) are likely to be adopted by June and December respectively. In order to reach the target of a 75% employment rate by 2020, “resolute action” is required: member states, working with the social partners, will have to increase their efforts to make it easier for employers to hire people, where necessary “by improving wage-setting mechanisms and removing barriers to the creation of new jobs”. The European Council looks forward to the Commission's forthcoming “employment package”, which is designed to boost employment in certain key sectors, improve management of skills needs and promote workers' geographic mobility.
In a letter to the European Council, European Commission President José Manuel Durão Barroso says that now it is time for concrete results. He says that the direction has to be pointed and hope given, otherwise the EU will not be able to count on social support for major measures that will have to be taken. He reviews implementation of the priority measures for stimulating the economy as agreed at the end of January, measures which, in the main, are in line with those set out by 12 member states, including Italy and the United Kingdom, but not France or Germany (see EUROPE 10557).
These measures are: - internal market: publication in June of a communication on improving and monitoring implementation of internal market policy (for example, the services directive), on-going assessment of the performance of three sectors (tourism, construction and business services); - digital agenda: several proposals are on the table, including on allocating of €7 billion for broadband internet infrastructure, and on cross-border online payment dispute settlement; - energy: publication by June of a communication on the internal energy market, and the proposal on the table for the new funding framework for transport infrastructure, the “Connecting Europe Facility”; - innovation: a definitive agreement by June on the European patent, the proposal on the table to create an EU-wide venture capital market, creation of a new European pre-commercial public procurement programme, publication by June of a communication on the European Research Area; - external dimension: the launch of trade negotiations with Armenia, Georgia and Moldova, hoped-for finalisation this year of negotiations with Canada, India, Malaysia and Singapore, completion by June of an impact assessment study ahead of possible negotiations with China, on-going discussion of closer links with the United States (interim report expected in June); - reducing the administrative burden: legislative proposals on the table to reduce red tape for micro enterprises; - employment: on-going urgent action to address youth unemployment (team of Commission experts visiting eight member states), proposals on the table to improve the portability of pensions and reduce the number of regulated professions. The Commission will also call for the adoption in June of the proposal to introduce “project bonds” to fund construction of infrastructure in the energy, transport and new technology sectors. (MB/transl.rt)