Brussels, 22/07/2014 (Agence Europe) - At their informal meeting in Milan on 21 July, new Commissioner for Industry Ferdinando Nelli Feroci presented the European industry ministers with the outlines of the roadmap for the initiatives under the strategy put forward in January by former Commissioner Antonio Tajani to reindustrialise the EU, known as the “industrial renaissance”. This document, which was called for by the European Council of March and is scheduled for early 2015, will be based around four axes.
The first of these is market access. The aim is, firstly, to make full use of the potential of the single market by getting rid of the final obstacles to its correct functioning. “We intend to continue improving the standardisation of products, intensifying the integration of business services and progressing with greater determination to create a digital internal market”, said Feroci. At the same time, an internationalisation strategy will be promoted to improve access to third-country markets for EU companies, by negotiating bilateral agreements with key economic partners. In this regard, Feroci pledged to pay close attention to the TTIP negotiations.
The second pillar is access to inputs, with a view to facilitating companies' access to finance, notably via the COSME programme, Horizon 2020 and the structural funds, and improving access to raw materials and energy. The availability of qualified professionals will also be promoted. On this, “the Commission is committed to promoting a dual system of education and training which has given excellent results in some member states”, Feroci explained.
The third pillar: smart industry and innovation. Through the Horizon 2020 programme and its budget of €80 billion, Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) and the development of advanced manufacturing and green technologies will be promoted. The budget of €100 billion from the structural funds the 2014-2020 will help the regions to develop industrial innovation, particularly through clusters and demonstrative projects, said Feroci.
The roadmap will be backed by initiatives to guarantee a regulatory framework which is favourable to companies and to reduce the administrative burden. In this context, Feroci supports the actions announced in the REFIT programme to improve the quality of regulation, and is considering a more systematic and effective use of impact assessments, competitiveness proofing, cumulative cost assessments and impact tests on SMEs, to be used both the European and national legislation.
Lastly, over and above these four pillars, an important element of the roadmap will be the integration of competitiveness into all European policies (mainstreaming). “To achieve this goal we will need to improve the mechanisms for the coordination of decision-making on industrial policy at EU, national and regional level”, Feroci concluded. (EH)