The number of single market infringements has increased to 837 open cases (+5% compared to 2019), according to the latest Single Market Scoreboard 2021 edition, published on Monday 20 December.
This is one of the highest levels in the last ten years, the European institution noted in its press release. According to the figures, the average percentage of all single market directives for which the transposition deadline has expired and which have not yet been transposed into national law has fallen to 1%, while the percentage of directives which have not been correctly transposed has never been higher than in 2020, at 1.4%.
According to the European Commission, there are still too many public procurement tenders that attract only one bid, with the institution regretting that the lowest price remains the sole award criterion in a majority of tenders.
However, there are some positive aspects, such as the increasing use of SOLVIT, a tool for informal resolution between consumers and businesses vis-à-vis public authorities for poor transposition of EU rules. Thus, the instrument dealt with about 2,600 cases in the year 2020, of which 80% were solved. However, the Commission notes a systematic lack of resources in a number of SOLVIT centres.
The use of the Internal Market Information (IMI) system increased significantly compared to the previous year. The ‘Your Europe’ portal attracted almost 33 million visits.
SMEs have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, with the Commission reporting a 1.3% decrease in their number and a 7.6% decrease in their added value. In contrast, eco-innovation has grown steadily in the EU. The Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) has thus progressed, with 3,838 organisations and 12,751 sites in 2020.
To consult the notice board: https://bit.ly/3yOKddt (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)