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There are already serious reservations concerning the EU’s net-zero growth, as well as about “indefinite delay” of corporate sustainability rules and a “far-reaching simplification”. These and other issues were mentioned recently by Von der Leyen, Commission President in Davos. However, some EU officials in headline commitments note that in the context of the Green Deal everything remains “fully valid”; thus, only time can tell how these issues can be combined…
Background
Last year’s wake-calls by M. Draghi and E. Letta made the EU officials thinking to review fundamentally the competitiveness issues by adopting so-called “competitiveness compass” reflecting several Commission’s initiatives scheduled for the next months, i.e. including the Clean Industrial Deal due in February.
Drawing from reports from Draghi and Letta on how to boost the EU’s economy, the initiatives would aim at tackling the EU’s innovation gap with global rivals, ensure the bloc’s economic security and make progress on decarbonizing EU industry.
It seems that the EU’s new economic doctrine is “putting deregulation before decarbonization”, with slightly altered climate mitigation efforts and a “newfound focus on competitiveness”. Experts are unanimous that the EU competitiveness in the world is a multi-facet phenomenon comprising several sectors in the member states’ political economy’s models: e.g. it includes industrial transformation, energy issues, investments, renewables, etc. The EU leaders are For example, recent conference in Denmark was devoted to a new EU-wide industrial strategy are seriously dwelling on strategic reviews of EU energy, climate policies and decarbonization, to name a few.
More in our articles on Draghi&Letta reports: https://www.integrin.dk/2024/09/09/eu-wide-competitiveness-challenges-and-perspectives-in-draghi-report/, and in: https://www.integrin.dk/2024/08/10/european-political-guidance-in-development-next-five-years/
As well as in: https://www.integrin.dk/2024/11/04/european-industrial-strategy-new-incentives-for-decarbonized-future/; https://www.integrin.dk/2024/10/21/enhancing-european-research-and-innovation-boosting-eus-competitiveness/
Correcting the EU-wide priorities
According to the Commission President, the coming six thematic areas will include:
– energy security and energy prices;
– financial issues – many companies and countries are expecting a funding boost for struggling industries;
– recycling and critical raw materials, with a Circular Economy Act next year;
– labor and skills – with the importance of social policy elements in the Clean Industrial Deal;
– lead markets; and
– global action – with a combination of diplomacy and trade measures.
The draft “compact” revealed the main message: i.e. transition to a decarbonised economy must be “competitiveness-friendly and technology neutral”. Hence the compass goal is to make Europe a perspective “hub of tomorrow’s technologies and clean products”, which are solely invented, manufactured and marketed in the EU, and “staying on the course to carbon neutrality”.
Source: https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-new-economic-vision-is-speaking-to-green-deal-critics-competitiveness-compass/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=alert&utm_campaign=EU%E2%80%99s%20new%20economic%20vision%20is%20speaking%20to%20Green%20Deal%20critics
Vital notes and references on the issue:
= Commission’s delayed competitiveness proposal is now due next week, in: https://www.politico.eu/article/commissions-delayed-competitiveness-proposal-is-now-due-next-week/
= The proposals aimed to set the economic strategy for the Commission’s work until 2029 have been postponed; see Commission’s competitiveness proposal gets bumped to the end of January, in: https://www.politico.eu/article/commissions-competitiveness-proposal-gets-bumped-to-jan-29/
= The EU’s upcoming industrial decarbonization strategy will revolve around six thematic “pillars” ranging from energy prices and workforce issues to recycling and trade. More in “EU’s Clean Industrial Deal to cover 6 themes from energy prices to trade”: https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-clean-industrial-deal-to-cover-six-themes-from-energy-prices-to-trade/.
= On labor, skills and education in: Eteris E. Educational Challenges for a New Century: Policies for sustainable growth. – SpringerBriefs in Education Series, 2024. – 128 pp. In: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-59013-9_1 ; ISBN 978-3-031-59012-2.