Brussels, 25/02/2008 (Agence Europe) - Adopting their contribution to the European Spring Council, on Monday 25 February, the European ministers for the economy voiced their hopes that the free movement of knowledge would be elevated to the rank of “fifth freedom”, in reference to the four freedoms (free movement of persons, goods, services and capital) included in the European Treaty. It is certainly in knowledge-related activities that opportunities for the European economy are the greatest, said Andrej Vizjak, the Slovenian minister for the economy. In its document on the issues in terms of competitiveness and innovation, the Competitiveness Council shares the analysis of the Commission that the revised guidelines remain valid for the new cycle (2008-2010) of the revised Lisbon strategy.
The ministers call on the member states and the European Commission to “step up their dialogue and extend their cooperation to better identify and remove obstacles to the cross-border mobility of knowledge”. They stress the importance of increasing the mobility and career prospects of researchers, with the Commission to present a specific communication in 2008. They also believe that the member states must push on with reforms of their higher education systems and do more to achieve life-long learning. The Commission is invited to monitor the performance of the EU in the “Internet economy”, ahead of a report to the European Council of 2009, and to present a recommendation and a code of best practice on the management of intellectual property, the “Intellectual Property Charter” (EUROPE 9419).
During the discussion, several national delegations spoke of their great interest in the “Small Business Act” (SBA) for Europe, a transversal action plan aiming to boost the growth of European SMEs, to be presented by the Commission before the summer. Günter Verheugen, European Commissioner for Enterprise, said that he was “a little startled” by the “high expectations” voiced by the member states. Belgium and Sweden indicated that they would pay particular attention to what the Commission presents. Austria and Slovakia stressed the need to put the principle of “Think Small First” at the heart of European policy. France, which has made this action plan one of the priorities of its presidency of the EU in the second half of 2008, once again pleaded in favour of increased access by SMEs, particularly innovative SMEs, to public procurement contracts. The Netherlands pulled their punches a little, stating that there would be no point in the SBA unless it brought genuine added value.
Lastly, the Competitiveness Council reiterated the objectives laid down by the European Council of 2007 of achieving a reduction of the administrative burden by one quarter between now and 2012. This objective can be achieved, amongst other things, by improving the quality of European legislation. The ministers hope that the first fast track actions planned for 2007 will be finalised at the Spring summit and “welcome the intention of the Commission to adopt a second raft of actions”. These proposals, which have already been sent to the high-level group for the reduction of the administrative burden, which is to meet in the near future, will be adopted and presented “very soon” by the Commission, said Mr Verheugen. (M.B.)