London, 05/09/2002 (Agence Europe) - During his European tour to discuss the liberalisation of the gas and electricity markets (that led him to London on Tuesday, Berlin on Wednesday and will end in Paris on Thursday), the Danish minister for economic and business affairs, Bendt Bendtsen, who is chairing the new EU Competitiveness Council, said: "If on my tour I can achieve a common understanding with Great Britain, Germany and France on the overall issues and obtain promises of a willingness to reach a compromise concerning the outstanding issues, then hopefully the way will has been cleared for the Danish EU Presidency to tie up the strands at the Council meetings in October and November". Bendtsen was looking forward to his meetings with his British counterparts, including Patricia Hewitt, UK trade and industry minister, stressing their great desire to support the Danish Presidency's ambition of achieving a rapid liberalisation of the EU's energy markets. The minister said he hoped to obtain the German economics and technology minister, Werner Müller's, full support for the adoption by the European Parliament and the Council this year of proposals concerning the final stage of opening up the gas and electricity markets, as requested by the Barcelona European Council. "With the great impact of energy prices on European business, a liberalisation must be considered a core element of the Lisbon aim of making the EU the world's most competitive economy", said Bendtsen. In Paris on Thursday, he met Francis Mer, the French economics and finance minister.
During his tour of European capitals, Bendtsen also discussed a number of other issues, including the role of the new Competitiveness Council in relation to the Lisbon Process. This will also be the topic of the Council meeting in Nyborg on 11/12 October.