The industrial strategy presented by the European Commission on Tuesday 10 March (see EUROPE 12443/7) received a mixed reception from stakeholders.
In a joint declaration, nine Member States (Austria, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Romania and Spain) welcomed the strategy, which they said “defines how Europe will strengthen the competitiveness of its industry and master the industrial transition under way” and called for its rapid implementation.
In particular, they put forward proposals on the development of European industrial ecosystems, the financing of strategic value chains, key technologies and breakthrough innovation and the establishment of a level playing field with companies from non-Member States. According to these countries, there is a need to adopt an effective instrument to ensure reciprocity and a level playing field in the field of public procurement.
They also welcome the Commission’s long-term action plan for better implementation and enforcement of single market rules, as well as its approach to business data and the digitisation of the economy.
European Parliament political groups cautious
The political groups in the European Parliament, on the other hand, have different opinions: while the EPP welcomes the strategy, the S&D and the Greens/EFA are less enthusiastic.
“The EPP group can support the objectives set by the Commission”, explained German Christian Ehler, the group’s coordinator in the Industry Committee (ITRE). “It is a profound transformation. We want to change entire industries and sectors with this strategy. It’s a good approach, as opposed to the regulatory angle we have had until now”, he explains.
His compatriot Jens Geier (S&D) feels that the Commission “is taking a step in the right direction” with this strategy, but that it still “falls short of the expectations of social democrats in some areas”. “The proposed measures are therefore important and correct, but not concrete and coherent enough to achieve the socialist goal of a more sustainable industry in the EU”, he specifies.
Henrike Hahn (Greens/EFA, Germany) is being even tougher. “With these new strategies for industry and SMEs, the Commission has not decided whether it wants to make the Green Deal a success or not. It is still hesitant when it takes determination and courage to trade in accordance with the Paris climate objectives”, she regrets. According to the MEP, the industrial strategy puts in place ‘mini strategies’ for individual sectors without setting binding sustainability and decarbonation targets. The strategy for SMEs does not define regulatory measures and incentives to enable these companies to integrate sustainability and circularity into their business plans and processes, Ms Hahn also denounces.
A strategy that has met with varying degrees of approval from professional organisations
The professional organisations are also divided on this strategy. CEEP (public enterprises), Copa-Cogeca (agro-industrial agricultural producers and cooperatives) and Industry4Europe (manufacturing industry) are satisfied, while BusinessEurope (large enterprises) and SMEunited (small and medium-sized enterprises) were more moderate and Eurochambres (chambers of commerce) are disappointed.
For Valeria Ronzitti, Secretary General of CEEP, the Commission’s communications are “a central element in achieving the EU’s ambition to support the environmental and digital transitions of economic actors”. In particular, she welcomes the inclusion of the SME strategy in this industrial package.
Copa and Cogeca Secretary General Pekka Pesonen welcomes the SME strategy, whose objective is “well-calibrated to their main needs”, as does the Industry4Europe coalition, which calls the industrial strategy “an important step towards an ambitious industrial strategy to compete with other regions of the world that have already put industry at the top of their political agenda”. “It is now essential to turn this strategy into concrete actions and to keep the industry at the top of the EU political agenda in the coming years”, explains coalition coordinator Philippe Citroën.
For the President of BusinessEurope, Pierre Gattaz, the development of a tool to mitigate market distortions caused by heavily subsidised companies in non-Member States is welcome. But he also mentions that the border carbon adjustment mechanism is not the miracle solution. Future initiatives will have to take into account the diversity of SMEs in terms of size, age and sector.
SMEunited recognises that the strategy develops a very clear picture of the challenges facing SMEs, but regrets that it fails to create a paradigm shift in policy-making. “The EU institutions in all policy areas must use the SME perspective as a basis for developing measures”, the organisation said.
Finally, it is a disappointment for Eurochambres, which considers that while the industrial strategy contains “some positive elements, the overall package does not convince the network of chambers that it will make a perceptible difference for companies striving to boost Europe’s competitiveness”. The SME strategy is not one, “it is a list of questions and measures”, its chairman, Christoph Leitl, also regrets. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)