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SPEECH/11/64
José Manuel Durão Barroso
President of the European Commission
Statement of President Barroso at the
pre-European Council debate
EP Plenary
Brussels, 2 February 2011
President,
Honourable Members,
This European Council takes place at a very important moment for our
neighbourhood, namely in Egypt, Tunisia and Belarus. While respecting the
different specific situations in these countries, I expect this European Council to
state in very clear terms that the principles of the rule of law, respect for
fundamental rights and a pluralist democracy must be enacted and respected:
Democracy is indeed the best way to achieve stability and prosperity in those
countries just like anywhere else.
This Friday, the European Council will discuss two areas which are also very
important for the future of Europe and its economy: energy and innovation.
Both of them are core elements of the Europe 2020 Strategy, and central to our aim
of restoring sustainable growth and increasing the European Union's
competitiveness.
And let us not forget that energy and innovation are also two fields where the
Community approach and European dimension can offer a lot of value-added. This
is an important point to make in the current context.
Through the Europe 2020 Strategy, we have already agreed on a set of ambitious
goals and targets on energy and innovation. I could mention the Innovation Union
flagship, adopted last October, or the Resource Efficient Europe flagship, adopted
just last week and in which energy features prominently.
So this week's European Council should identify clear, concrete deliverables. The
discussion and the outcome should be as operational and productive as possible.
I have described energy policy as the next great European integration project. And
it's not hard to see why. A safe, secure, sustainable and affordable energy supply is
key to our economic and strategic interests as a global player.
We have already done a lot in the past with our Climate and Energy package and
with internal market legislation. We must build on that by exploiting the opportunities
provided by the Lisbon Treaty, deepening our existing co-operation and launching
initiatives in new areas like energy security.
Therefore the first credibility test of our energy policy is delivering what we have
already agreed upon.
The Commission has outlined the measures we think are urgently needed in our
Energy 2020 and Energy Infrastructure Communications. I want the European
Council to endorse these priorities and, in particular, make a clear commitment to
complete our internal energy market by 2014. A common technical standard should
also be fixed for electric vehicle charging systems this year, as well as for smart
grids and meters by the end of 2012.
A truly integrated internal market on energy is key to deliver more growth and jobs,
promote technological progress, modernise our infrastructure and reduce our
exposure to import and price volatility.
We must also ensure that when it comes to energy, no Member State is isolated
from the rest of Europe. I want Member States to agree on a 2015 deadline to put
an end to energy islands in Europe.
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We have done good work in connecting the Baltic countries to the continental
system. Now I will turn to Central and Eastern Europe to move forward the NorthSouth Energy Interconnections. I want a plan to be agreed in autumn on the
projects needed to link the Baltic to the Adriatic.
While we are on track to achieve our renewables target, on present performance we
will only meet half of our energy efficiency target.
More efficient energy use is the key to unlocking massive environmental and
economic benefits - and reducing Europe's annual energy bill by around €200
billion. It could also create 2 million jobs by 2020.
So I will ask the European Council to give new impetus to our pursuit of energy
efficiency. We could use the scale of public procurement across the EU to give a
real boost to energy efficiency – and this means local jobs, jobs that cannot be
outsourced, jobs for SMEs, and real savings for both industry and households.
The Commission will adopt in the coming weeks an Energy Efficiency Plan
proposing specific measures to boost energy efficiency. For instance that by 1
January 2012 all Member States include energy efficiency standards in public
procurement.
The Commission will then review the progress achieved with these measures by
2013 and will consider further measures - including proposing legally binding targets
- if necessary.
Member States should agree a deadline for including energy efficiency standards in
all public procurement for public buildings and services.
For its part, the Commission stands ready to explore new measures in the fields of
energy saving for cities, sustainable biofuels, smart grids and energy storage.
We also need to focus on the external dimension of European energy policy. Just a
fortnight ago, I had encouraging discussions with the Presidents of Azerbaijan and
Turkmenistan on Europe's access to the Caspian gas fields which would enable the
realization of the Southern Corridor. An important breakthrough was achieved with
the signature of a Joint Declaration with Azerbaijan and a concrete commitment
from Turkmenistan to supply gas to Europe.
The message I took from that visit is this: when we take key decisions on energy
jointly in Europe we are a strong player in the global race for energy resources.
Underlining the importance of the external dimension of EU energy policy should be
a key message from the European Council. So I am looking forward to a very
important discussion on energy at this European Council and I am happy to say this
here in the European Parliament. This Parliament has always been very supportive
for a strong European policy on energy and you, yourself President Buzek, have
been a champion of a stronger commitment in Europe in terms of energy policy.
Moving to innovation, I think there is already broad agreement about what should
come out of the European Council. Perhaps less evident is a sense of how
desperately urgent action is; why boosting research and innovation is needed now,
when Member States are all making difficult choices about where to cut their
budgets.
Fiscal consolidation and public support for innovation are not irreconcilable policies.
Several Member States have shown that you can cut your overall budget while
maintaining growth-friendly expenditure, in particular on research and innovation.
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This is important, because delivering the innovation economy is the key deep
structural challenge. Our competitors know this. They are already betting on
innovation.
To avoid being left behind, we need the European Council's endorsement of our
Strategic and Integrated Approach to Innovation. Innovation needs to be part of our
economic policy, not simply a research instrument, as some people think.
At the European level we can add real value by improving the framework conditions
for research and innovation in the EU. Europe must become the natural home of
innovation, through effective standardisation, better use of intellectual property
rights, innovation-friendly public procurement and measures to help small,
innovative companies to secure financing.
Much of this does not cost money, but it does need political will and political will to
take measures using the European approachand the European dimension.
We can also squeeze more out of the European Research Area, making full use of
the single market by improving the mobility of researchers, for example.
And as well as maintaining spending, we need to spend better. With the Budget
Review we have launched a debate on how to simplify the way EU money is spent,
and to work towards a common strategic framework for research and innovation
funding.
In other words, getting better value for money also means cutting red-tape, so that
EU-funded scientists can spend more time in the lab or in their work, and not with
red tape and bureaucracy. We will never attract the most brilliant scientists and
most innovative companies with an incoherent set of funding instruments, based on
complex and bureaucratic rules.
Ladies and gentlemen,
So this month's European Council will discuss energy and innovation. But it will not
avoid discussing the economy. The economy, the problems of the unemployed –
this remains the most important concern for our citizens.
We have just launched the first European Semester – putting economic governance
into action. The Annual Growth Survey was well received. The messages were
focused and clear. It provides the necessary guidance at EU level so that Member
States can take our interdependence into account when making their national policy
decisions.
Good progress has already been made on the legislative proposals that will
underpin our new system of economic governance. I would like to thank the
Hungarian Presidency. The Hungarian Presidency has my full support in
accelerating work to ensure adoption by June.
In addition, as part of this comprehensive response, we will need to resolve the
outstanding issues surrounding the European Financial Stability Facility and the
European Stability Mechanism.
Regarding the EFSF, other than widening its scope, what is a stake is how to
increase its effective lending capacity – as stated by the Commission in the Annual
Growth Survey.
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Of course, this issue should be put in the context of the comprehensive response.
The discussions in the European Council of Friday next will most likely cover the
need for reinforced coordination of economic policies in the EU and the euro area. I
welcome such discussion, which fits very well with the Commission's Annual Growth
Survey. In fact, the European Semester is not just about co-ordinating budgetary
policies, but addressing wider issues like macroeconomic imbalances and
competitiveness gaps.
In addition we have recently heard some authoritative voices arguing in favour of
deepening economic governance, but at the same time stating that it can only be
done through the intergovernmental method.
We have to be clear: the Commission welcomes the deepening and acceleration of
economic governance and policy co-ordination, including within the euro area. But
we are firmly convinced that the Treaty provides the right framework and
instruments to achieve this. In fact, we would not further our cause if parallel
structures were to work in an ultimately incoherent manner.
Establishing a system of reinforced economic governance for the EU, and in
particular the euro area outside the Union framework raises important, and
politically very sensitive, questions. In fact Member States should adopt measures
which are fully compatible with the Community method and the framework provided
by the Treaty. Insofar as measures fall under national competence, and of course
some of them are under national responsibility, this competence should be
exercised in coherence with the overall Union framework.
So I really believe this matter is extremely important, because we can make a great
progress in matters of economic governance. We need, and we have been in favour
of, more policy coordination, better economic governance, but we have to do it in a
way that is coherent and compatible with the treaties and with the community
approach.
The Commission will be particularly attentive to these issues. The Treaty, and the
ensuing "community method", implies fully respecting the role of all the European
institutions.
I thank you for your attention.
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