Brussels, 25/02/2008 (Agence Europe) - Meeting in Brussels on Monday 25 February, the European ministers for the economy adopted conclusions on the revision of the internal market strategy (see EUROPE 9608). Only the paragraph on the implementation of legislation on the single market, particularly the directive on services, was modified. Italy, supported by Estonia, stressed the importance of the interoperability of electronic systems.
Meglena Kuneva, European Commissioner for Consumer Protection, presented the ministers with the European scoreboard on the functioning of the consumer markets in various sectors of the economy (EUROPE 9592). The Council favourably welcomed this scoreboard, which is a useful addition to the Internal Market Scoreboard. In their conclusions, the ministers stressed the importance of a single market which is favourable both to businesses and consumers. They pleaded in favour of a market based on a raft of simple and coherent rules, offering the legal certainty and clarity needed to increase the cross-border opportunities of SMEs, and to offer consumers a broader choice of high-quality products and services at the best price. The Council, which takes the view that the citizens should enjoy effective access to goods and services on offer throughout the EU, calls upon the Commission and the member states to remove any obstacles still hindering this access. It welcomed the intention of the Commission to create a new consumer price database. Similarly, it expects the initiatives of the Commission, after the re-examination of the Community acquis, to reflect a useful balance between a high level of consumer protection and the competitiveness of companies, in full respect of the principle of subsidiarity. (M.B./A.N.)