1 EU policies until 2020
| (a)
(31328)
6018/10
SEC(10) 116
(b)
(31329)
6037/10
SEC(10) 114
(c)
(31373)
7110/10
COM(10) 2020
|
Commission staff working document: Europe 2020: consultation — first overview of responses
Commission staff working document: Lisbon Strategy evaluation document
Commission Communication: Europe 2020 — A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth
|
| Legal base | —
|
| Documents originated | (a) and (b) 2 February 2010
(c) 3 March 2010
|
| Deposited in Parliament | (a) and (b) 18 February 2010
(c) 5 March 2010
|
| Department | HM Treasury
|
| Basis of consideration | (a) and (b) Two EMs of 1 March 2010
(c) EM of 15 March 2010
|
| Previous Committee Report | None
|
| To be discussed in Council | ECOFIN Council on 16 March 2010, European Council on 25-26 March 2010
|
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
|
| Committee's decision | For debate in European Committee
|
Background
1.1 In 2000 an action plan, known as the Lisbon Agenda or Lisbon
Strategy, was launched to "make Europe, by 2010, the most
competitive and the most dynamic knowledge-based economy in the
world". In 2005 the action plan was relaunched for the remainder
of the decade as the Lisbon Strategy for Jobs and Growth.
1.2 In November 2009 the Commission published a Working
Document seeking the views of citizens, organisations and public
authorities on a future "Europe 2020" strategy as a
successor to the current Lisbon Strategy for Growth and Jobs.
It set out broad proposals for policies over the next ten years
intended to enable the EU to make a full recovery from the economic
crisis, while speeding up the move towards "a smarter, greener
economy". It described the need for structural reform in
the Union, proposes some policy priorities and highlights possible
delivery mechanisms.
1.3 The document was sent to the relevant sectoral
Councils on 7 December 2009 and discussed at the European Council
on 10-11 December 2009. The European Council's Conclusions recorded
that it "takes note of the consultation launched by the Commission
on the future strategy and looks forward to discussing an ambitious
proposal as early as possible in 2010 with a view to full discussion
in the European Council, including at its 2010 Spring meeting".[1]
The public consultation closed on 15 January 2010 and the Commission
intended to present a formal proposal for a strategy with a view
to its adoption of the strategy at the Spring European Council.
1.4 When we first considered this document we said:
· whatever
plan is adopted to follow on from the Lisbon Strategy for Jobs
and Growth would be an important determinant for a range of EU
policies in the years up to 2020;
· thus,
while we were content to clear the document, we were clear that
we would wish to recommend the Commission's formal proposal, once
published and deposited, for debate before the Spring 2010 European
Council; and
· meanwhile,
we wished to see any comments the Government decided to make in
response to the document.
Subsequently the Government did send us such a response,
as we reported on 20 January 2010.[2]
The documents
1.5 The first Commission staff working document,
document (a), gives an initial indication as to the main trends
that emerged from the responses, well over 1,500, to the Commission's
consultation. All Member States provided an input and the Commission
describes "broad support" for the policy priorities
for Europe 2020 it outlined:
· creating
value by basing growth on knowledge;
· empowering
people in inclusive societies; and
· creating
a competitive, connected and greener economy.
On governance of Europe 2020 the Commission says
that:
· Member
States agreed that the lessons of the Lisbon Strategy need to
be learnt;
· this
includes raising the profile of reforms under the strategy, where
there is "strong support for conferring lead responsibility
to the European Council", and greater national accountability
for progress, where "the majority of Member States agree
with the idea of a limited number of EU targets translated into
national ones";
· several
Member States called for "stronger economic policy coordination
and more binding governance arrangements"; and
· Member
States recognised the "strong inter-linkages" between
fiscal policy and structural reform and the need for "coherent
policy advice", although some Member States "want to
preserve the role of different economic coordination instruments
in the Treaty, so to avoid any possible impression that the Stability
and Growth Pact is being weakened".
1.6 The Commission also received contributions from
about 120 regional and local authorities, from some two thirds
of Member States, EU institutions and bodies, including the Committee
of the Regions and the Economic and Social Committee, three EU
political parties, numerous EU and national organisations representing
interests including the social partners, consumers, business,
environmentalists, educationalists, researchers and academics,
almost 500 individual citizens, the Norwegian and Japanese Governments,
the IMF, the UN, EFTA, the American Chamber of Commerce and the
Japanese Business Council.
1.7 The second Commission staff working document,
document (b), is an evaluation of the Lisbon Strategy. The Commission
notes:
· the
context in which the Lisbon Strategy was formulated in 2000, when
"the EU needed to increase its productivity and competitiveness
in the face of ever fiercer global competition, technological
change and an ageing population";
· that
it "recognised that the reform agenda could not be pursued
at the EU level alone, but that…close cooperation between
the EU and Member States would be necessary to achieve results";
and
· that
it "reflected a first acknowledgement that Member States'
economies are inherently interlinked".
1.8 The Commission says that two factors have to
be taken into account in assessing the Lisbon Strategy:
· the
most important assessment is the impact the Strategy had on growth
and jobs, but "this is not straightforward, as the economic
cycle and external events, as well as public policies, play a
determining role"; and
· "the
Lisbon Strategy was not implemented in isolation" —
the EU has grown from 15 Member States in 2000 to 27 Member States
today, the euro area now stands at 16 members and has developed
into a major world currency and the Strategy is "coming to
the end of its term at a time when the impacts of the economic
crisis are deeply felt in Europe".
1.9 The Commission then outlines a number of main
conclusions, including:
· the
Lisbon Strategy has helped build broad consensus on the reforms
that the EU needs — the four priority areas, research and
innovation, investing in people and modernising labour markets,
unlocking business potential and energy and climate change, are
now at the top of the political agenda "in all Member States";
· the
Strategy has "delivered concrete benefits for EU citizens
and businesses" — for example increased employment
created 18 million new jobs before the crisis hit and the Commission
has proposed administrative burden reductions "worth more
than €40.00 billion" (£34.50 billion);
· increased
employment, however, " has not always succeeded in lifting
people out of poverty" — some groups "still face
specific hurdles such as poor access to training for the low-skilled",
while child poverty remains "at a high level in some Member
States";
· structural
reforms have made the EU economy "more resilient and helped
us weather the storm" — for instance, medium- to long-term
structural reforms "no doubt facilitated the design and rapid
roll-out of the European Economic Recovery Plan at the end of
2008";
· the
Strategy, however, "was not sufficiently equipped to address
some of the causes of the crisis from the outset" —
with hindsight more focus could have been on "robust supervision
and systemic risk in financial markets, speculative bubbles"
and those factors that fuelled the "macroeconomic imbalances
and competitiveness problems that were at the root of the economic
crisis";
· the
pace of implementing reforms was "slow and uneven" and
the strategy suffered from "variable ownership and weak governance
structures" — for example, EU level targets were "too
numerous" and did not "reflect differences in starting
positions between the Member States";
· a stronger
link between the Strategy and "other EU instruments and sector-specific
initiatives or policy measures (such as the Stability and Growth
Pact, the Sustainable Development Strategy or the Social Agenda)
would have improved its effectiveness" — while earmarking
of structural funds has "helped mobilise considerable investments
for growth and jobs", although there is further to go; and
· more
could have been done to strengthen both the euro area dimension
(the importance of interdependence in a closely integrated economy,
particularly the euro area, "has not been sufficiently recognised")
and the external dimension of the Strategy.
1.10 In the Communication, document (c), the Commission
presents its formal proposals for the Europe 2020 strategy. The
Commission sets out the challenges facing the EU over the coming
decade and the need for "a strategy to turn the EU into a
smart, sustainable and inclusive economy delivering high levels
of employment, productivity and social cohesion" and proposes:
· policy
priorities that focus on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth;
· seven
flagship initiatives to deliver on these policy priorities;
· mobilising
EU instruments and policies such as the single market to pursue
the strategy's objectives; and
· a governance
structure that includes five headline targets that the EU should
aim to achieve by 2020.
1.11 The challenges facing the EU over the next decade
are said by the Commission to include:
· recovering
from the crisis;
· securing
and maintaining efficient and sustainable financial systems and
public finances;
· globalisation;
· pressure
on resources; and
· ageing.
And it proposes three mutually reinforcing policy
priorities which should frame the Europe 2020 strategy:
· smart
growth — developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation;
· sustainable
growth — promoting a more resource efficient, greener and
more competitive economy; and
· inclusive
growth — fostering a high-employment economy, delivering
social and territorial cohesion.
1.12 The five headline targets to be achieved by
2020 suggested by the Commission, to "guide our efforts and
steer progress", are that:
· the
employment rate of the population aged 20-64 should increase from
the current 69% to at least 75%;
· 3% of
the EU's GDP should be invested in research and development;
· the
"20/20/20" climate and energy targets should be met
(including an increase to 30% of emissions reductions, if the
conditions are right);
· the
proportion of early school leavers should fall to 10% from the
current 15%, while increasing the share of the population aged
30-34 having completed tertiary education from 31% to at least
40%; and
· the
number of citizens living below national poverty lines should
be reduced by 25% (that is, 20 million fewer people should be
at risk of poverty).
1.13 To "ensure that each Member State tailors
the Europe 2020 strategy to its particular situation, the Commission
proposes that these EU targets are translated into national targets
and trajectories". These national targets would "reflect
the current situation of each Member State and the level of ambition
it is able to reach as part of a wider EU effort to meet these
targets." The Commission then sets out its proposed flagship
initiatives to complement national efforts.
1.14 First is "Innovation Union", which
would seek to orient research and development and innovation policy
towards the solution of grand challenges facing the Union. In
doing so the Commission describes actions to be undertaken at
EU level:
· completion
of the European Research Area;
· improvement
of framework conditions for business innovation;
· launching
"European Innovation Partnerships";
· strengthening
EU instruments that support innovation; and
· promotion
of efforts to co-ordinate the knowledge triangle of research,
education and innovation.
And it suggests at Member State level:
· reforming
research and development and innovation systems to promote excellence;
· ensuring
a sufficient supply of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
graduates; and
· prioritising
knowledge expenditure.
1.15 Second is "Youth on the move", which
would aim to enhance the performance and international attractiveness
of the EU's higher education institutions and raise overall quality
of all levels of education and training in the EU, combining both
excellence and equity, by promoting student mobility and trainee
mobility, and improving the employment situation of young people.
1.16 Third is "A digital agenda for Europe"
which would aim to deliver sustainable economic and social benefits
from a digital single market based on "fast and ultra fast
internet", with broadband access for all by 2013, access
for all to much higher internet speeds (30 megabits per second
or above) by 2020, and 50% or more of EU households subscribing
to internet connections above 100 megabits per second. To enable
this the Commission sets out a number of initiatives, including:
· providing
a legal framework to facilitate high speed internet infrastructure
and related services;
· using
structural funds (with respect to broadband roll-out) to create
a true single market for online content and services;
· developing
(another) spectrum policy;
· increasing
EU research and innovation funding for information, communications
and technology innovation and technology; and
· promoting
internet access for all EU citizens.
It also asks Member States to produce high-speed
internet strategies, to establish legal frameworks to help facilitate
network rollout and to promote accessible online private and public
services.
1.17 Fourth is "Resource efficient Europe",
which would aim to support the shift towards a low-carbon economy
that is efficient in the way it uses all resources. The objective
would be to decouple economic growth from resource and energy
use, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, enhance competitiveness
and promote greater energy security.
1.18 Fifth is "An industrial policy for the
globalisation era", which would aim to improve the business
environment, especially for small and medium sized enterprises,
in order to develop a globally competitive and diversified industrial
base. The Commission suggests:
· supporting
the transition of manufacturing and service sectors to a low carbon
economy, including a review of regulations and standards to encourage
greater resource efficiency and promotion of key enabling technologies;
· a horizontal
approach at EU level, combining policy instruments such as "smart"
regulation, public procurement, competition rules and standard
setting;
· promotion
of restructuring of sectors in difficulty towards future-oriented
activities, energy efficient technologies and production methods;
· renewing
the Corporate Social Responsibility policy; and
· assisting
the transport, logistics, space policy and tourism sectors.
The Commission also calls on Member States to encourage
innovative small and medium sized enterprises (including through
public procurement), to improve enforcement of intellectual property
rights and to reduce administrative burdens.
1.19 Sixth is "An agenda for new skills and
jobs", which would be EU action focusing on those in employment
through the flexicurity agenda, 'smart' regulation, social dialogue
and mobility and migration. The Commission proposes:
· using,
for those out of or entering work, agreed education and training
coordination;
· correlating
Member State action on these; and
· carrying
forward work under the Lisbon Strategy on tax-benefit reform,
active ageing, work-life balance and gender equality.
1.20 The last flagship initiative is "European
platform against poverty", which would use the current open
method on social inclusion and protection, building on the awareness-raising
from the current European Year for Combating Poverty and Social
Exclusion to improve visibility and clarity. The Commission also
proposes a basis for progressing on the draft equal treatment
Directive and adding EU support for 'social innovations' to help
the most disadvantaged.
1.21 Under the rubric "missing links and bottlenecks"
the Commission then argues that "all EU policies, instruments
and legal acts, as well as financial instruments", should
be mobilised to pursue the Strategy's objectives. It discusses
the possibilities under three headings. First, in relation to
"A single market for the 21st century", the Commission
says that:
· a
stronger, deeper, extended single market is vital for growth and
job creation;
· in response
to the economic crisis there is a need to re-launch the single
market — it still has barriers to cross-border activity
and needs to adapt to the growth of information and communication
technologies and services;
· creation
of an open single market for services through full implementation
of the Services Directive could increase GDP by between 0.5% and
1.5%;
· it aims
to improve access for small and medium sized enterprises to the
single market and through implementation of competition policy
ensure that the single market remains an open market;
· it proposes
action to reinforce single market measures, drive forward the
smart regulation agenda to reduce administrative burdens particularly
for small and medium sized enterprises and to support entrepreneurship;
and
· it aims
to adapt legislation to the digital era and make it easier for
businesses and consumers to agree and enforce contracts with partners
in other Member States.
1.22 In relation to "Investing in growth: cohesion
policy, mobilising the EU budget and private finance", the
Commission notes that it will propose action to develop innovative
financing solutions to support the objectives of Europe 2020,
including:
· fully
exploiting possibilities to improve the effectiveness and efficiency
of the existing EU budget through stronger reprioritisation and
better alignment of EU expenditure with the goals of the Europe
2020 strategy;
· greater
use of the European Investment Bank and the European Investment
Fund; and
· making
an efficient EU venture capital market a reality.
1.23 In relation to "Deploying our external
policy instruments", the Commission says that:
· external
economic policy needs to be deployed to foster EU growth through
participation in open and fair markets worldwide;
· an open
EU, within a rules based international framework, is the best
route to exploit the benefits of globalisation and to boost growth
and employment. The Commission is committed to working with the
World Trade Organisation (WTO) and bilaterally to secure better
market access for EU business, including small and medium sized
enterprises;
· it will
draw up a trade strategy for Europe 2020, including ongoing multilateral
and bilateral trade negotiations, trade opening initiatives in
key sectors such as "green" technologies and other high
tech products and services, proposals for high level strategic
dialogue with key partners and, from 2011, an annual trade and
investment barriers report to identify ways to improve market
access; and
· the
EU is committed to its international development responsibilities,
aiming to eradicate poverty, promote growth and fulfil the Millennium
Development Goals.
1.24 The Commission emphasises that pursuit of the
Europe 2020 objectives must be based on a credible exit strategy
as regards budgetary and monetary policy on the one hand and the
direct support given by governments to economic sectors, in particular
the financial sector, on the other and that the sequencing and
coordination of these several exits, including within the euro
area, are important.
1.25 The Commission then outlines a governance structure
for Europe 2020, with its suggestions including that:
· the
strategy should be based around a thematic approach, focussed
on the headline targets and flagship initiatives, and country
reporting, to help "Member States define and implement exit
strategies, to restore macroeconomic stability, identify bottlenecks,
and return their economies to sustainable growth and public finances";
· Europe
2020 and Stability and Growth Pact reporting and evaluation should
be done simultaneously, while keeping the instruments and procedures
separate and maintaining the integrity of the pact;
· the
Europe 2020 strategy be established institutionally in a small
set of integrated guidelines (integrating employment and broad
economic policy guidelines), to replace the existing 24 guidelines;
· these
new guidelines should reflect the decisions of the European Council
and integrate agreed targets;
· policy
recommendations under the country surveillance mechanism would
address issues with significant macroeconomic and public finance
implications and those under the thematic approach would provide
detailed advice on microeconomic and employment challenges; and
· there
should be a leading and central role for the European Council
to steer the strategy, "as it is the body which ensures the
integration of policies and manages the interdependence between
Member States and the EU."
1.26 Finally the Commission sets out decisions for
the European Council, saying:
"The Commission proposes that the European
Council, at its meeting in Spring 2010:
— agrees on the thematic priorities
of the Europe 2020 strategy;
— sets the five headline targets …:
on R&D investments, education, energy/climate change, employment
rate, and reducing poverty, defining where Europe should be by
2020; invites the Member States in a dialogue with the European
Commission to translate these EU targets into national targets
for decisions at the June European Council, taking into account
national circumstances and differing starting points;
— invites the Commission to come forward
with proposals for the flagship initiatives, and requests the
Council (and its formations) on this basis to take the necessary
decisions to implement them;
— agrees to strengthen economic policy
co-ordination to promote positive spill-over effects and help
address the Union's challenges more effectively; to this end,
it approves the combination of thematic and country assessments
as proposed in this communication whilst strictly maintaining
the integrity of the Pact; it will also give special attention
to strengthening EMU;
— calls on all parties and stakeholders
(e.g. national/regional parliaments, regional and/or local authorities,
social partners and civil society, and last but not least the
citizens of Europe) to help implement the strategy, working in
partnership, by taking action in areas within their responsibility;
— requests the Commission to monitor
progress and report annually to the Spring European Council, providing
an overview of progress towards the targets, including international
benchmarking, and the state of implementation of the flagship
initiatives.
"At its subsequent meetings:
— endorses the proposed integrated
guidelines which constitutes its institutional underpinning following
the opinion of the European Parliament;
— validates the national targets following
a process of mutual verification to ensure consistency;
— discusses specific themes assessing
where Europe stands and how progress can be accelerated. A first
discussion on research and innovation could take place at its
October meeting on the basis of a Commission contribution."
The Government's view
1.27 In relation to the Commission's paper on the
responses to its consultation, document (a), the Economic Secretary
to the Treasury (Ian Pearson) first reminds us that the Government
responded with an outline of its emerging views on the Europe
2020 strategy and that those views, which would help to ensure
focus on the key policy priorities and improve political engagement
and coherence between the macroeconomic, microeconomic and financial
pillars of EU economic policy, are set out in greater detail in
its paper on an EU Compact for Jobs and Growth.[3]
The Minister comments that the document provides a valuable overview
of responses to the consultation and the themes that emerged and
that the Government welcomes the fact that there is an emerging
consensus among Member States and other stakeholders on the policy
priorities for Europe 2020.
1.28 The Minister continues, on the governance of
the new strategy, that the Government:
· agrees
that, while the Lisbon Strategy set the right direction for economic
reforms, the successor strategy needs to raise the public profile
of these reforms and increase the accountability for progress;
and
· has
proposed establishing an annual economic summit of EU leaders
to draw together analysis of progress based on reporting from
the macroeconomic (the Stability and Growth Pact), microeconomic
(peer review of structural reform) and financial sector (European
Systemic Risk Board) processes and to set future direction for
EU policy making.
1.29 On the second document, on lessons from the
Lisbon Strategy, document (b), the Minister says that the Government
welcomes the Commission's timely (in relation to discussion of
the successor strategy) assessment of the Lisbon Strategy. He
comments that:
· the
Government agrees that the Lisbon Strategy has played an important
part in promoting economic reform across the EU by providing political
impetus for EU and national policies, a toolkit for reform based
on learning from the best performers in the EU and coordination
in areas where action or inaction in one Member State would impact
on citizens in another — as such, it was a factor in rising
employment rates and productivity across the EU;
· the
EU and its Member States did not, however, make enough progress
quickly enough and the progress that they did make has been set
back by the economic crisis; and
· the
Government agrees that Europe 2020 will need to raise the public
profile of the necessary economic reforms and increase the accountability
for progress.
The Minister concludes by referring again to the
Government's proposed "EU Compact for Jobs and Growth"
and its proposal for an annual economic summit of EU leaders.
1.30 On document (c) the Minister first says that
the proposals' conformity with the principle of subsidiarity will
depend on the details as they emerge but notes that the Commission
does say "The European Council should provide overall guidance
for the strategy, on the basis of Commission proposals built on
one core principle: a clear EU value added."
1.31 Turning to the policy implications the Minister
says that:
· the
Government welcomes the Commission's Communication, which correctly
highlights the huge challenges that the EU faces over the next
ten years;
· it welcomes
the Commission's proposed priorities for Europe 2020 — smart,
sustainable and inclusive growth; and
· these
priorities are interdependent and mutually reinforcing.
1.32 On the headline targets and benchmarking proposed
by the Commission the Minister comments that:
· the
Government supports the idea of a small number of headline objectives
that set the priorities for the Europe 2020 strategy, with agreed
indicators used to measure progress towards them;
· it remains
to be convinced, however, that the indicators proposed by the
Commission represent a coherent assessment of economic growth;
· this
might be better achieved by a more comprehensive set of indicators
that would be relevant to all Member States, such as employment
rate, labour productivity, and capital services growth as a measure
of effective investment;
· of the
indicators proposed by the Commission, the Government would question,
for example, whether targets in "percentage of GDP invested
in R&D" and "number of those living below the median
disposable income" would really help Member States, many
of whom have different economic and social structures, to address
innovation and social inclusion;
· the
Government believes that it is important to get the levels right
— national targets in these indicators should not be based
on EU-level figures;
· they
should be established by governments on the basis of national
consultation — it would then be reasonable to hold governments
publicly to account for progress towards those targets;
· this
"bottom-up" approach would help raise ownership and
accountability, as well as being more credible than "top-down"
targets imposed on Member States, so addressing two key lessons
from the Lisbon Strategy; and
· ambition
could be encouraged by peer review and domestic debate on the
appropriate level for the targets.
1.33 In introducing the Government's views on the
Commission's proposed flagship initiatives the Minister says that:
· the
policy proposals in the Communication are broadly in line with
those made by the Government in its EU Compact for Jobs and
Growth paper and the Government looks forward to engaging
with EU partners on the detail;
· the
Government will seek the right balance of competence between community
and nation state in delivering economic policy; and
· on the
flagship initiatives that define the policy focus of Europe 2020,
the Government's view is that significantly more work needs to
be done on the initiatives and delivery mechanisms and on the
links between them.
1.34 On the specific initiatives the Minister says
first, in relation to "Innovation Union", that the Government:
· supports
EU initiatives which address the Union's relative weakness in
its capacity to convert outputs from research into high value,
innovative products and services;
· welcomes
the broad aims of this flagship initiative, especially the focus
on tackling grand challenges such as climate change and ageing
population and on strengthening all links in the innovation chain;
and
· welcomes
the emphasis on a supportive regulatory framework and on the need
to enhance access to finance to support growth in the key industries
of the future.
1.35 On the initiative "Youth on the move"
the Minister says that:
· the
proposal appears to largely carry forward work under recently
agreed cooperation on youth and on education and training;
· the
Government will need to see the full proposal for a youth employment
framework, in particular how this relates to those other processes
and also to the European Employment Strategy;
· the
Government would oppose any unnecessary duplication, especially
where it imposes burdens on Member States; and
· the
description of Member State action should be covered by the open
method approach to respect competence and subsidiarity.
1.36 Next, in relation to "A digital agenda
for Europe", the Minister says that the Government:
· welcomes
the inclusion of this initiative, with the commitments on broadband
being broadly consistent with those set out in Digital Britain[4]
and the UK Compact for Jobs and Growth;
· looks
forward to the more comprehensive EU information and communication
technologies policy, which the Commission is due to launch in
April 2010 — a Government priority for the EU digital agenda
is competitive and open information and communication technologies
markets (especially in relation to future fast broadband markets),
which will help economic recovery in the EU; and
· is keen
for the EU to take measures to stimulate take up of internet and
to complete the single market for online consumer and business
services to improve choice, security and the growth of innovative
businesses.
1.37 In relation to "Resource efficient Europe",
the Minister says that:
· the
Government supports the development of such an initiative, which
will be an important contribution to ensuring that the EU moves
towards a low-carbon, resource-efficient and climate-resilient
economy; and
· by putting
in place measures to decouple economic growth from the use of
resources and by supporting the transition to a low carbon economy
(including the promotion of renewable energy and energy efficiency),
the initiative will help to underpin long-term growth and create
new 'green' jobs for the future.
1.38 On "An industrial policy for the globalisation
era" the Minister says that the Government is broadly supportive
of this industrial policy, which is consistent with the Compact
for Jobs and Growth and maintains continuity with current
EU industrial policy. He continues that the Government's key industrial
policy priorities for the EU are:
· open
and competitive markets;
· the
creation of new jobs and development of skills;
· creating
the right framework to help the competitiveness of businesses
including small and medium enterprises;
· encouraging
a smooth transition to a low carbon economy; and
· encouraging
innovation and its commercial exploitation and enterprise.
1.39 Turning to "An agenda for new skills and
jobs" the Minister says that the Government:
· supports
the New Skills New Jobs agenda and the strategic framework for
cooperation in education and training, which have already been
launched;
· will
scrutinise any forthcoming proposals for EU action on labour mobility
to ensure that they do not impinge on the its ability to manage
the UK labour market in a flexible way, by forecasting skills
needs, working closely with and being responsive to employers'
needs and incorporating migration controls for third country nationals
where necessary;
· will
want further information about a second phase of the flexicurity
agenda to ensure the Council's agreed principles are respected
and the priority remains to tackle labour market segmentation;
and
· supports,
in relation to the legislative framework, better regulation and
improving implementation of existing standards, especially where
the Government believes that UK law sets the standard.
1.40 On the final flagship initiative, "European
platform against poverty", the Minister says that the Government:
· welcomes
this and has recently revamped its own stakeholder engagement
under the open method to help achieve this;
· will
need to examine specific proposals when brought forward, but what
is in the Communication appears consistent with agreed EU priorities
and Member States' competence and to fit with current Government
priorities; and
· has
a particular interest in developing social innovations.
1.41 Next the Minister discusses the Commission's
views on delivery mechanisms, the "Missing links and bottlenecks"
section of the Communication, telling us first, in relation to
"A single market for the 21st century" that the Government:
· supports
the Commission's aim to defend and deepen the single market and
to focus on creating growth and jobs; and
· welcomes
the Commission's re-launch of the single market and believes it
is important to build on the achievements of the existing single
market.
He adds that the Government's main single market
priorities are to:
· to
promote open and competitive markets both internally and externally
and resist protectionism;
· take
forward an ambitious agenda for the digital economy and other
growth industries of the future;
· promote
low carbon products and services;
· turn
the potential benefits of the Services Directive into a reality;
and
· enforce
internal market rules to make the single market work better for
small businesses and citizens, including the delivery of smart
regulation.
1.42 On "Investing in growth: cohesion policy,
mobilising the EU budget and private finance" the Minister
says that the Government:
· strongly
agrees with the Commission's proposal to fully exploit all possibilities
to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the existing EU
budget through stronger prioritisation and better alignment of
EU expenditure with the goals of the Europe 2020 strategy;
· set
out its position on reform of the EU budget in the Compact
for Jobs and Growth paper;
· notes
the Commission's suggestion that the review of the Financial Regulation
should be used to develop the potential of financial instruments
and awaits the Commission's proposal on this issue;
· strongly
supports better use of the European Investment Bank and the European
Investment Fund in helping small businesses access the finance
they need to help them grow; and
· is particularly
pleased that the Commission have adopted its proposal on increasing
availability of venture capital funding for early-stage innovative
small businesses by enabling the European Investment Fund to access
capital markets to raise new capital — the Government believes
that €3 billion in new capital would be a good starting point.
1.43 Then, on "Deploying our external policy
instruments", the Minister says that the Government:
· agrees
with the Commission on the importance of the external dimension
of EU policy to ensure global, open markets — the EU should
lead in the fight against protectionism, which threatens to undermine
the open trading system and damage EU business;
· believes
that the Doha Round of negotiations should continue to be the
first priority for the EU, complemented by assertive market access
in ambitious bilateral agreements — the Commission should
also have a greater focus on economic (including regulatory) co-operation
with the EU's major trading partners; and
· believes
that EU policy should stimulate growth globally, especially the
trade and growth of developing countries, which are amongst the
worst hit by the economic crisis — the EU should press forward
on negotiating full, regional Economic Partnership Agreements
that are truly development friendly and on delivering Aid for
Trade more effectively.
1.44 In relation to the Commission's suggestions
for governance of the Europe 2020 strategy the Minister comments
that:
· the
Government supports the proposed alignment of work on the EU's
macroeconomic, microeconomic and financial sector policies and
the leading role proposed for the European Council;
· these
are important prerequisites for an annual economic summit of the
EU's leaders, which would help ensure more coordinated, comprehensive
and coherent EU economic policies and greater political buy-in
to structural reform; and
· it will
be critical though that, while aligning the reporting on these
polices, Europe 2020 respects the separate legal bases on which
these operate.
1.45 Finally the Minister tells us that the President
of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, hopes to agree the
focus and governance of the strategy, including headline targets
at the European Council of 25-26 March 2010.
Conclusion
1.46 It whatever form the proposed Europe 2020
Strategy finally emerges, it will be central to EU policies during
the next decade. Therefore we have no hesitation in confirming
our earlier intention to recommend the Commission Communication,
document (c), for debate in European Committee before the European
Council meeting of 25-26 March 2010. We recommend also that the
two Commission staff working documents, documents (a) and (b)
be taken at that debate too, since much of the Communication derives
from the matters laid out in them.
1.47 We suggest that in the debate Members will
wish to examine the policy priorities, headline targets and flagship
initiatives set out by the Commission, together with its comments
on implementation and governance, particularly on those occasional
issues where the Government has expressed hesitation or caution.
1 See http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ec/111877.pdf.
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2
(31210) 16016/09: see HC 5-vi (2009-10), chapter 7 (13 January
2010) and HC 5-vii (2009-10), chapter 12 (20 January 2010). Back
3
See http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/329788/compact-jobs-growth.pdf.
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4
See http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/broadcasting/5631.aspx.
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