It is a pleasure for me to present business views on such an essential issue.

Transcription

1 SPEAKING NOTES 6 th Nvember TH NOVEMBER H30 JUSTUS LIPSIUS BUILDING INTERVENTION BY MARKUS J. BEYRER, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF BUSINESSEUROPE Intrductry remarks: the imprtance f CSR fr grwth It is a pleasure fr me t present business views n such an essential issue. Over 5 years since the start f the crisis, Eurpe is lsing grund n its internatinal cmpetitrs. Whilst we have essentially been undertaking crisis management, thers have been investing heavily in skills, infrastructure and R&D t increase cmpetitiveness. Eurpe urgently needs t press ahead with structural refrms: Eliminating 50% f Eur area cuntries gap with the best practices identified by the OECD culd increase the Eur area GDP by 3.75% within 5 years. Mst f the plicy instruments t implement structural refrms are in the hands f member states. But the crisis has underlined that Eurpean gvernments can t ignre the impact f each ther s decisin n their intertwined ecnmies, particularly when they share a cmmn currency. The Eurpean semester is therefre crucial t bth increase the crdinatin f ecnmic refrms, and their intensity. T supprt the semester prcess, BUSINESSEUROPE carries ut every year a Eurpean Refrm Barmeter. This evaluates refrm prgress and perfrmance in member states. Refrm Pririties AV. DE CORTENBERGH 168 BUSINESSEUROPE a.i.s.b.l. TEL +32(0) BE-1000 BRUSSELS FAX +32(0) BELGIUM MAIN@BUSINESSEUROPE.EU VAT BE EU Transparency register

2 Our members, representing businesses acrss Eurpe pint t 3 brad pririties fr refrm Firstly, Grwth-enhancing fiscal cnslidatin is essential t restre cnfidence in sustainable public finances Member States must strengthen cnfidence in the stability f public finances by cntinuing t prgress twards balanced budgets and in turn starting t reduce lng-term debt psitin. Fiscal cnslidatin needs t fcus upn reductins in public expenditure, rather than tax increases. Tax refrms must favur tax systems supprtive f lng term investments, by shifting tax burden away frm labur and capital. Secndly structural labur market refrms are needed t vercme labur market rigidities and t increase prductivity and emplyment. Well-functining and flexible labur markets facilitate jb creatin, transitins between jbs, and help t match skills supply and labur demand. It is imprtant t keep labur csts in line with prductivity t safeguard EU cmpanies cmpetitiveness and ability t invest Thirdly, structural refrms must unleash the grwth ptential f prduct markets. Opening markets t increased cmpetitin, including thrugh cmpletin f the single market in areas such as services, energy and digital ecnmy can help drive prductivity grwth and emplyment creatin. Member States must als supprt business expansin by reducing administrative csts. Refrm Prgress Our members tell us that The Cmmissin s Cuntry Specific Recmmendatins generally set the right pririties fr structural refrms Accrding t ur survey n the effectiveness f the Eurpean Semester in driving structural refrms, 69% f ur members believe that the cuntry specific recmmendatins are abslutely r t a large extent apprpriate. 2

3 Member States Natinal Refrm Prgrammes are als generally seen as apprpriate, althugh a quarter f the respndents still believe Member States NRP culd shw greater ambitin. Mre bradly, we particularly welcme the fact that the Cmmissin has stepped up its effrts ver time t prvide mre rbust and detailed recmmendatins t address structural weaknesses. It is als imprtant that recmmendatins are nt watered dwn by the Cuncil. We welcme the fact that this year s Cuncil final adptin has remained bradly in line with the initial targets set ut by the Cmmissin. Implementatin Hwever, ur survey als shws a majr gap between refrm plans and actual implementatin. Average refrm prgress is judged at best mixed by ur natinal federatins, with n federatin entirely satisfactry, and with n significant imprvement frm ne year t anther. Our assessment is shared by the Cmmissin, which cnsiders that prgress in cmparisn with previus year is bserved in nly 15% f the arund 400 cuntry specific recmmendatins 1. We are particularly cncerned regarding n prgress in implementing refrms in terms f prductivity and investment and in internatinal cmpetitiveness. This is particularly the case if we are t achieve the Cmmissin s gal t raise industry s share t 20% f EU GDP by 2020 Effrts t reduce the regulatry burden n businesses must accelerate. We are particularly wrried abut incnsistent energy and envirnmental plicies. This has resulted in industrial energy prices racing far ahead f thse in the US, putting EU industry at a cmpetitive disadvantage. Eurpe is als lsing grund in innvatin and skills. This is crucial if we are t attract the high quality, high paid jbs fund in glbally ftlse, technlgy intensive sectrs. 1 Mentined in Parliament s Ecn Cmmittee) reprt n Eurpean Semester (published 2013) 3

4 We therefre call fr further effrts t help R&D spending t reach the gal f 3% f GDP.. Educatin systems must als better meet future skills, particularly by having a greater fcus n STEM. Our survey recgnises that labur market refrms are taking place in a grwing number f cuntries. But mre needs t be dne t really hasten Eurpe s recvery ut f crisis and scale dwn EU unemplyment. The danger is that the present refrms are seen as the end and nt the starting pint fr refrm. In terms f public finances. cnslidatin effrts t restre sustainable public finances remain a key pririty fr businesses, It is essential that thse cuntries being given extra time t achieve budget targets intensify the structural refrms which are the basis fr which extra time has been granted. Our survey shws that financial stability is the area with mst rapid prgress has taken place. I hardly need t mentin the imprtant f getting refrm right in this area. Cnstraints in accessing affrdable funds, in particular fr SMEs, represent a majr bstacle t cmpanies investment and grwth and a majr risk ver the fragile bserved recvery. Refrms must strike the right balance between greater financial stability and ensuring access t affrdable lans. Natinal refrms must als be supprtive f alternative funding rutes, such as venture capital. Refrms raising the cst f capital and undermining investment, such as a tax n financial transactins, must be avided. Cncluding remarks: a need fr greater enfrcement I knw this is nt an easy task, While they take time t fully feed thrugh t grwth, structural refrms are already starting t shw results in sme cuntries. Fr example, labur and prduct market refrms in cuntries like Spain, Ireland and Prtugal have cntributed t higher cmpetitiveness and mre exprts. Current accunt deficit f almst 10% in Spain in % in Ireland and 11% in Prtugal in 2008 are all expected t be replaced by surpluses f arund 2% this year. 4

5 But this is a lng-lasting prcess and the early signs f a fragile recvery are n excuse fr a lss f plitical supprt fr refrm effrts. We are particularly supprtive f initiatives at Eurpean level which can make cuntry specific recmmendatins mre enfrceable. In this regard, we are particularly pleased, in the cntext f its n-ging wrk t increase the effectiveness f the Eurpean Semester prcess that the Cuncil gives pririty t imprving the mnitring f the implementatin f the cuntry specific recmmendatins. I can assure yu that BUSINESSEUROPE will give its full supprt in this area Thank yu fr yur attentin 5