On Wednesday 20 May in Strasbourg, following a lengthy debate, MEPs reaffirmed the need to strengthen both the single market and EU competitiveness, even though they did not entirely advocate the same solutions.
In the presence of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who promised to step up her institution’s work to “remove the barriers that still persist in our internal market” and put more pressure on national governments to prevent gold-plating, some lawmakers called for continued simplification and a crackdown on bureaucracy. Others advocated for the creation of truly integrated markets for capital, telecommunications and digital services, a point raised by, among others, Valérie Hayer (Renew Europe, French).
However, others, such as Iratxe García Pérez (S&D, Spanish), insisted on the need to take into account people at risk of poverty or social exclusion and to guarantee quality jobs as a prerequisite for ensuring such competitiveness.
“What use is the world’s largest market if millions of Europeans cannot fill their fridges, pay their rent, or turn on the heating?”, the Spanish MEP asked, arguing that sustainable competitiveness can only exist if it has a “social conscience”. Moreover, the S&D president in European Parliament renewed her call for the taxation of excess profits and for the green transition to continue.
Conversely, according to the Patriots for Europe and ECR groups, it is precisely this environmental legislation and the ‘European Green Deal’ that have led to the EU’s decline in competitiveness. According to Patryk Jaki, a Polish MEP from the ECR group, the EU has thus inflicted its own “decline” upon itself, particularly by implementing the carbon emissions trading system (ETS). “We must radically change course”, the MEP stated, adding that the ‘Green Deal’ “would finish off our economies”.
The green transition has “been badly managed and is stifling our economies”, commented the Hungarian Patriots for Europe MEP Kinga Gál. The lawmaker also warned against simplifying legislation in a way that would lead “to an excessive concentration of powers at Commission level”.
She also criticised the new proposals for the Multiannual Financial Framework on cohesion, arguing that they fail to achieve the stated competitiveness objectives.
Meanwhile, other lawmakers welcomed the proposal for a 28th regime for businesses, designed to facilitate the rapid creation of innovative new companies and remove barriers to establishing operations in other Member States.
However, this proposal also raises concerns among MEPs from The Left, such as Finland’s Li Andersson, who remain unconvinced that workers’ rights will not be adversely affected by the new regime. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)