Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-02-24-Speech-3-033"
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"en.20100224.13.3-033"2
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"Mr President, let me first of all congratulate President Van Rompuy on what was a very good informal European Council for the first time under his chairmanship.
These priorities are not unfamiliar. But the fact that we have not yet succeeded in realising these goals makes them more important, not less. Where we need to make a radical change is not in our prescription of what the European economy needs, but in our approach on how to make it happen.
What do we need in order to succeed? Firstly, the strategy must be comprehensive. We cannot have a pick-and-mix strategy allowing everyone to do the easy parts, the feel-good things, and leave the real challenges to the others. There are still many issues: when I think about completing the single market, about the quality of our taxation systems, about the way we spend money at a time of intense pressure on public finances, to name but a few.
Secondly, our strategy must engage all parts of our societies. We will not succeed in putting European society on the right track for the future if this comes at the cost of social conflict. That is why a proactive approach to creating jobs and addressing the scourge of poverty are essential. It is also why we have been wise to reform financial markets. We want a strong financial sector able to finance innovation and help businesses to grow: one which acknowledges its broader responsibilities to society and governments which came to its aid at the time of need; one which accepts that effective supervision at European level is necessary today.
Thirdly, we must not confuse having an overall vision for the European economy with the question of ‘who does what?’. It should not be a question of a debate on competences. What we have to see is the added value of a European approach. It is quite evident at a time of globalisation, when we need to discuss with America, with China, with Russia, with others, that there is added value in a common approach; for instance, in the G20, an initiative that was in fact launched by the European Union during the French Presidency by the President of France and myself, when we proposed to the American President to accept those summits. It is indeed necessary to recognise that we have greater influence if we act together. It makes no sense to recognise global interdependence and to reject European interdependence. That is why we need to act together.
Still, a lot of action will have to come at national level. Of course, there are national responsibilities which we expect to be addressed mainly by governments, but we also expect governments to commit sincerely to a European approach. The European approach is necessary, not to bring back powers in Brussels – this is not our intention at all – but to help the indispensable reforms in our societies so that they can bring more prosperity, more well-being to our citizens.
We will only succeed if we are ready to work together, not against each other, and therefore we need credible ownership at all levels. We need strong and true coordination in the economic field. The Lisbon Treaty gives us these instruments and we will use them.
In this European Council, I saw awareness of this problem. I can compare the discussions this time with the discussions five years ago when we were discussing the Lisbon Strategy. Let me tell you very frankly and very openly that I saw among Heads of State or Government much more awareness of the need to act together and also of the external constraints on the European economy. I sincerely hope that this time, narrow national interests will not again resist the need for closer coordination and an effective system of European governance.
We also need significant European Union level flagship measures to typify what we are trying to achieve: some concrete plans. We are going to present some of them: projects like an Innovation Plan, a new skills programme, a proper industrial policy, a digital agenda, green technologies, and a specific plan or action against poverty; projects that have a value, an impact in themselves; projects that show why Europe provides part of the solution and which show that the European Union is not just talking, it is acting.
Let me finish by calling upon you, the European Parliament, to show your strong support for these projects as legislator, as budgetary authority and as champion of European action in every corner of the European Union.
After reaching agreement among all of us on an important statement on Greece, we discussed the Europe 2020 strategy – a strategy for sustainable growth and employment. I had the opportunity to focus on the substantive policy issues we are facing, on the challenges, and on the lines which the Commission will formally propose next Wednesday.
Before the crisis, the European economy was making progress: we saw 18 million new jobs and a more dynamic business environment. However, these gains have been wiped out by the financial crisis and its impact on many of our areas of activity: a 4% fall in GDP in a single year, unemployment shooting up to 10%, a huge hit to our prosperity, a real threat to our societies. At the same time, the task is getting tougher: we have an ageing population, a growing productivity gap with our competitors, and failings in education and research. However, we also have many strengths: we have the world’s biggest market economy; we have the single market; we have the euro area. All this has proved to be an important asset in the crisis.
But today, Europe faces a very important choice; I would say a defining choice for future generations. Hoping for a return of the good old days is no option. One option is limited change – the lowest common denominator which brings some reform and some growth. But we could never get back what we lost in the crisis. This option would result in a Europe which is second class in the new global order. Minimal changes, some kind of adaptations.
I believe we can and must be more ambitious. We can aspire to an economic strategy that puts Europe on the path to competitiveness and that can create millions of new jobs. But this cannot be done by half measures and incremental change. We need to instil a sense of urgency, a recognition that business as usual will not protect our European way of life and will not defend our social models. On the contrary. Those social models will be put at risk if we do not adapt to a much more challenging global environment.
This requires a joint effort. We need the Member States; we need the European institutions; we need stakeholders and society at large; and we need specifically the active involvement and support of this Parliament, the European Parliament, for shaping this strategy and for communicating it to the people.
Next week, the Commission will set out the key elements of the strategy that it will formally propose to the European institutions. It will centre on three priorities: smart growth, inclusive growth, sustainable growth.
First, the core driver of growth must be knowledge; knowledge and innovation that produces tomorrow’s ideas, tomorrow’s skills, tomorrow’s technologies. Second, to keep in force our European model of society, we need to deliver more jobs. Our goal must be healthy, prosperous, secure societies, where everyone feels they can play their part. That means giving people jobs and skills and it means tackling the scourge of poverty head on. The problem of poverty is not only a national problem; it is a problem for which we need a common European response.
Our social market economy must be hardwired to seize the opportunities of the future. I am talking about sustainable growth, recognising the importance of tackling climate change, recognising the pressure on resources. With this, I mean a competitive economy, deepening the internal market, creating better conditions for investment – especially for SMEs – a European economy able to hold its own in a globalised market place."@en1
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