European Competitiveness: How Can the Next European Commission Boost Productivity, Growth and Economic Prosperity?
Our recent event, hosted with the Swedish Embassy in Madrid, discussed how the next European Commission can help boost productivity, growth, and economic prosperity.
Guests benefited from insights by Diego Rubio, Secretary General of Public Policy, European Affairs and Strategic Foresight, President’s Office, Government of Spain, Christian Danielsson, State Secretary, Swedish Prime Minister’s Office, Anna Stellinger, Deputy Director General, Head of International and EU Affairs, Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, Jesús Ortiz, Chair of the EU Affairs Commission, Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations, and Moderator Judith Arnal, Senior Analyst at the Center for European Policy.
A number of noteworthy conclusions resulted from the discussion.
1. We must create the conditions for more capital investment in Europe
The Draghi report insists on addressing capital flows away from Europe. Approximately 300 billion Euros flows from Europe to the United States every year. The view in the room was clear: Europe needs to create favourable conditions for investment, particularly by easing regulatory burdens to improve the business environment. Improving the implementation of new regulation is also crucial, as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often struggle to adapt to the changing and diverging regulatory environment. Ensuring that Europe remains an attractive place for investment is vital if we want a modern thriving economy.
2. Europe needs resilient supply chains
Europe needs to improve the resilience of its supply chains. Europe should aim to secure alternatives to reduce dependency via improved market access opportunities for European businesses. This will not only safeguard Europe’s economic stability but also ensure resilience in times of geopolitical or economic turmoil. Sustained growth is a pre-condition to security and not the other way around.
3. We need tech development in Europe but also tech diffusion
Draghi makes clear the link between productivity growth in the US over the last 20 years and innovation in high growth technology markets. Rather than focus on playing catch up on two decades of innovation, we should think about how we make it easy to leverage technology and potentially fuel the innovation of tomorrow.
4. Companies are experiencing a skills mismatch
Europe faces a mismatch between the skills required by companies and the training provided by educational institutions. This gap needs bridging to foster innovation. We have forgotten that training and research is the core of innovation. Upskilling workers is essential to unlocking Europe’s potential.
5. It’s time to strengthen our Single Market
It requires political courage to strengthen the Single Market, that’s why Europe Unlocked was launched. The panel was unanimous on the fact that we have the resources in Europe to achieve our objectives, what’s lacking is the political will to make impactful changes. The beginning of a new term for the Commission is the moment to change that.