Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-04-12-Speech-2-227"
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".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, it is a regrettable fact that, although five years have passed since the European Summit held in Lisbon in 2000, we are still a long way from reaching the goals set for the EU economy at the time. Growth rates have fallen far short of projections, and the number of new jobs created has not been enough to achieve the desired employment rates. Growth and employment are therefore priorities for the Barroso Commission.
The full potential of these reforms will only be realised if they are implemented as a package, the individual components of which complement one another. Implementing all these measures will give a significant boost to growth and employment, and so we need a strong and solid partnership based on trust to drive forward these much-needed reforms. This must not and will not be a technocratic process; instead, it must be viewed as a highly political process, which will deliver results only if it is endorsed by European society as a whole.
Your House will play a key role in this process, and it is crucial that we maintain the political momentum generated by the revision of the Lisbon Strategy and by the decisions taken by you and at the Spring Summit in Brussels. The time has come to capitalise on this momentum by taking the first steps towards implementation. The Commission would be most appreciative if Parliament could give particular and timely consideration to the guidelines that have been presented today.
Two months ago, we presented our proposal for a revision of the Lisbon Strategy, in favour of which Parliament had voted by an overwhelming majority. The key features of this revised Strategy include a clear definition of priorities and the establishment of a partnership between the Community and the Member States geared towards implementing the planned measures. The European Council approved the Commission’s proposals three weeks ago, which means that the stage is now set for us to implement our goals.
The package we are presenting to the House today is the first phase of our implementation strategy. The proposal for integrated guidelines is a practical means of making the new Lisbon Strategy simpler, more transparent and more manageable in political terms. The guidelines for economic and employment policy, which have now been summarised in one document, are both a roadmap for more growth and employment and a basis for the Member States’ national Lisbon programmes. This is the crucial point; what we are establishing is a Community framework within which the Member States will be able to devise tailor-made national solutions to the problems that we have identified together.
A first set of guidelines urges the Member States to continue pursuing stability-oriented macroeconomic policies. Given nearly all Member States’ experience of the problems associated with an ageing population, budgetary discipline is the only way to achieve long-term sustainability of public finances. We must make sure that public spending is targeted at activities that contribute to long-term growth, in particular in the fields of education, science and research.
The second set of guidelines deals with structural reforms, the aim of which is to facilitate the transition to a more knowledge-based economy and to make Europe a more attractive place to work and invest in. I should like to elaborate on a number of structural guidelines that are of key importance.
The first of these is the internal market. We need an internal market that functions well, and this requires the removal of the remaining barriers to market access and a more rigorous implementation of competition policy.
Secondly, we need better regulation, and there must be a systematic assessment of the economic, social and environmental impact of legislative proposals at both national and EU level. Legislation generates costs for businesses, and these costs can weigh particularly heavily on small businesses. It is for this reason that better regulation is one of the key building blocks of a business-friendly environment and a strong entrepreneurial culture.
The third point I wish to address is innovation. Europe’s future lies in knowledge-intensive and innovative sectors of the economy, and both the public sector and the economy itself must therefore step up investment in research. The guidelines call on the Member States to facilitate innovation by promoting technology transfer and establishing innovation clusters, as well as by encouraging the uptake of new technologies such as information technology. Innovations in the field of environmental technologies are a factor not only in boosting growth and employment, but also, and in particular, in achieving sustainable development.
The guidelines for structural policy are followed by a final set of guidelines for employment policy, which Mr Špidla will discuss shortly. Their aim is to create jobs, boost investment in education and skills, make the workforce and businesses more flexible and modernise social security systems. Particular attention must be paid to improving the situation of young people, since unemployment among this group is twice as high as among the general population."@en1
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