Spring Summit to launch three-year growth plans

By Dana Spinant and Tim King

Date: 10/03/05

Jean-Claude Juncker, the prime minister of Luxembourg, is to propose to the EU's leaders a succession of three-year plans to boost growth and jobs in Europe.

The draft conclusions of the next EU summit, on 22-23 March, put forward a revised strategy for advancing the EU's Lisbon Agenda targets. The "new approach" envisages a three-year cycle starting in April 2005. The point of departure of the new scheme would be the European Commission's "strategic report" which heads of state and government will debate at the summit.

According to the draft, which has yet to be discussed by member states' representatives, in the light of the summit's conclusions and on the basis of Commission proposals, the Council of Ministers will adopt a package of recommendations or "integrated guidelines". These will combine the broad economic policy guidelines and the employment guidelines for each country.

On the basis of these guidelines, each government will be invited to respond with its national programme of reform in the autumn of 2005. The national programmes will take into account the specific situations in the respective member states. They could be revised in the event of major political changes. Member states are invited to reinforce their national co-ordination by naming a specific co-ordinator. The Commission will, for its part, present an "EU Lisbon programme" covering the whole range of actions to be undertaken at the level of the Union.

Starting from 2006, each member state's autumn report will describe all measures adopted within the last 12 months to achieve the national programmes.

Every three years, the guidelines, the national reform programmes and the EU Lisbon programme will be renewed following a Commission strategic report analysing the situation in each member state.

The draft summit conclusions identify three main priorities for boosting the European economy: knowledge and innovation, creating an attractive space for work and investment, and social cohesion. They call for new rules on state aid both to reduce the levels of aid and to re-orient funding towards research and innovation. They also demand fiscal incentives to encourage private investment and the modernisation of the management of research institutes and universities. The summit's draft conclusions affirm support for a European Research Council to support advanced research. They say the European Investment Bank should extend its structured finance facility to cover research and development.

To improve the business climate across the EU, the paper insists on the completion of the single market. It stresses the necessity to achieve an internal market in services and "supports the Commission's efforts to achieve a broad consensus on the directive". It recognises the need to have "services of general interest of good quality and at affordable prices", to placate the concerns of countries like France and Germany and of the European Socialists, who are hostile to the liberalisation of services if not accompanied by protection for public services.

Preview of the Spring European Council on 22-23 March 2005. The draft conclusions of the summit put forward a revised strategy for advancing the EU's Lisbon Agenda targets. The 'new approach' envisaged a three-year cycle starting in April 2005. The point of departure of the new scheme would be the European Commission's 'strategic report' which Heads of State and Government were to debate at the summit.