Industrial policy has a twofold approach: from the EU and from each Member State. Coordinated governance is needed to avoid mismatches between countries. The EU institutions must take the lead, taking a practical and realistic approach.
Nothing can be done without a highly skilled, digital public administration, and without good regulations. We have many examples of useless laws in every layer of activity. Better regulation will mean less regulation: reducing bureaucracy, simplifying processes, tackling corruption and setting new product and market standards.
welcomes the explicit Commission statements that there are potential conflicts of interest in the sales and distribution models for investment products, and that therefore most consumers only have access to advisors who advise on the products that they sell;
recommends developing "basic" products for the retail investment sector, along the lines of basic bank accounts and compulsory motor vehicle liability insurance;
suggests establishing a minimum training requirement for sales intermediaries, including on sustainability, of at least 35 hours per year.
that the Commission’s competition action should also cover distortions originating from outside the EU, to address their effect on European businesses that comply with EU legislation;
that the Commission assess the distortions of competition resulting from the COVID-19 State Aid Temporary Framework, together with other European funds;
constant support and monitoring of the large-scale retail market as part of antitrust policy to protect the interests of producers and consumers and allow supply chains to function properly;
using state aid rules to support the green and digital transition, provided that such aid is conditional on the achievement of strict targets which, if not achieved, would require aid received to be returned.
making more use of joint purchasing of medicines, which can take many shapes, to help ensure access to affordable treatment, which remain an issue;
setting up a special EU-level fund to ensure access to treatment for all patients in Europe suffering from rare diseases;
offering incentives to favour drug manufacturers in the EU and encourage the relocation of production from non-EU countries. It also proposes the establishment of a European contingency reserve of medicines of strategic importance.
stresses that MSMEs will need a lot of support to adopt the full range of modern business responsibility practices;
recommends developing simple and practical tools such as checklists, templates and calculators, and alternative-scenario analyses which MSMEs can use to develop their operations in line with modern business responsibility and to report on their commitments and achievements;
welcomes the European Commission's plan to adopt a non-financial reporting standard applicable to MSMEs in 2024, but insists that it must be clear and simple, in line with the principles enshrined in the SME Relief Package.
calls on the European Parliament and the Council of the EU to adopt an adjusted package of own resources before the end of the current political term of office;
acknowledges the need and urgency to add adjustments to the already proposed new own resources and put forward new additional own resources, and in this respect, recognises that, overall, the temporary statistical own resource could contribute to financing NextGenerationEU until the implementation of the "Business in Europe: Framework for Income Taxation (BEFIT)" mechanism;
believes that the proposed Regulation should assist in leading ESG rating market to maturity by fostering reliable information and raising standards through regulated competition between ratings providers;
believes that minimum requirements on the quality of the ratings should be included in order to prevent greenwashing, "social-washing" and other types of misinformation and believes that mandatory inclusion of double materiality should be part of these minimum quality requirements for ESG ratings;
is convinced that, in light of the persistent inflation, it is important for the social partners and governments to negotiate and agree on national income pacts, which should aim to reduce inflation without hampering investment and growth, while being accompanied by targeted measures to support vulnerable population groups.
advises the ECB to keep adapting its policies to reach a stable 2% inflation target without overtightening.The EESC also suggests using measures other than changing interest rates to lower inflation and stresses the importance of lowering interest rates as soon as possible;
backs aligning Member States' fiscal policies with ECB's to manage inflation coherently, highlighting the need for tailored fiscal policy measures due to varying public finances. The EESC emphasizes the importance of targeted fiscal aid for vulnerable groups and firms, alongside supporting research, development, and innovation to boost productivity and maintain competitiveness;
