Stéphanie Yon-Courtin (Renew Europe, French) announced, on Friday 22 September, that her annual draft report on the European Parliament’s European competition policy had been published the day before.
The draft report proposes to welcome the European Commission’s announcement to investigate Chinese electric vehicles (see EUROPE 13249/1) and to invite the Commission to modernise public procurement rules to promote green and digital industry by taking into account sustainability and European sovereignty criteria.
With regard to merger control, the draft proposes to welcome the Commission’s initiative to review its communication on the definition of the “relevant market” and recommends a dynamic approach. The document underlines the importance of Commission action against “killer acquisitions” by dominant companies of emerging competitors.
With regard to anti-competitive agreements and practices, the draft report stresses the need for effective action by the Commission, in particular through greater use of interlocutory procedures.
A large chapter is devoted to the digital sector. The draft report welcomes the designation of “gatekeepers” (see EUROPE 13173/37) for platform services. However, the MEP regrets that cloud service providers are not included.
Stéphanie Yon-Courtin also believes that, in response to the US Inflation Reduction Act, State aid is not the only solution. Among other things, she advocates a European Sovereign Wealth Fund with fresh financing to support European industrial policy.
Finally, the MEP states that Parliament should play an active role in shaping European competition policy.
Work will continue in the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON), in particular with shadow rapporteurs Fulvio Martusciello (EPP, Italian), Paul Tang (S&D, Dutch) and Andżelika Anna Możdżanowska (ECR, Polish).
The vote is scheduled for 28 November in the ECON Committee. The report could be put to a plenary vote on 15 January 2024.
Link to the report: https://aeur.eu/f/8pr (Original version in French by Émilie Vanderhulst)