Blair calls for a new economic direction

By Dana Spinant

Date: 27/10/05

EU heads of states and government were meeting for an informal summit in London today (27 October) with the UK presidency urging new measures to boost Europe's competitiveness.

Speaking to the European Parliament yesterday (26 October) Tony Blair said that he wanted his colleagues to back five priorities to give Europe a new economic direction:

• more money for research and development and greater co-ordination of member states' R&D investment;
• a common European energy policy, with a properly integrated EU grid;
• more competitive universities with increased links between business and university research;
• a policy of controlled migration to boost the competitiveness of the European economy, and;
• a better balance between working life/family life to face the challenge of demographic ageing.

He backed a globalisation adjustment fund, as proposed by the European Commission, to protect individuals who suffer from the effects of economic restructuring, but not to protect failing companies.

Blair said that these priorities should be supported by a matching EU budget, which had to be aligned with the economic priorities "at some point".

He said he was committed to do his best to get a deal on the EU's next multi-annual budget, the financial perspectives, before the end of the UK presidency in December. In a meeting with Parliament's political leaders, Blair said that today's summit would be a good opportunity to prepare the ground for a deal on the financial perspectives in December.

The UK prime minister won applause from MEPs, just as he did at the end of June, on the eve of the UK presidency. But some MEPs still criticised his leadership, pointing to a gap between Blair's powerful speeches and his actions. "He spoke strongly in June and then he did nothing," one said. "He spent very little time in plenary talking about what happened in the past few months, because there is nothing to say, nothing happened."

Article reports on a speech given by the UK's Prime Minister at the European Parliament on 26 October 2005, one day before EU Heads of States and Government were meeting for an informal European Council in London. Blair said that he wanted his colleagues to back five priorities to give Europe a new economic direction by boosting competitiveness.

BBC News: EU 'must meet global challenge', 26.10.05 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4378932.stm

United Kingdom: 10 Downing Street: Speech, 26.10.05 http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page8384.asp

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