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Europaudvalget 2002-03
EUU Alm.del Bilag 620
Offentligt

Modtaget via elektronisk post. Der tages forbehold for evt. fejl

Europaudvalget

(Alm. del - bilag 620)

Det Europæiske Råd

(Offentligt)

Medlemmerne af Folketingets Europaudvalg

og deres stedfortrædere

Bilag

Journalnummer

400.C.2-0

Kontor

EU-sekr.

21. februar 2003

Til underretning for Folketingets Europaudvalg vedlægges formandskabets kommenterede dagsorden

vedrørende Det Europæiske Råds møde i Bruxelles den 21. marts 2003, 6469/03.

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NOTE

From :

To :

Subject :

The Presidency

Council

European Council (21 March 2003)

– Annotated draft agenda

According to the Seville European Council Conclusions the General Affairs and External Relations Council, acting on a

presidency proposal, shall draw up an annotated draft agenda at least four weeks before the meeting of the European

Council.

The Presidency accordingly submits the following annotated draft agenda, which sets out the main items it expects the

European Council to address in connection with the Lisbon Strategy. It draws on the Commission's Spring Report, which

has reviewed progress made towards the Lisbon goals and suggested policy orientations. Work on many of those questions

has already been or will shortly be carried out in the various Council configurations concerned and the Presidency will, as

appropriate, draw on the outcome of that work when fleshing out these elements into a set of conclusions for the European

Council.

A revised annotated draft agenda will be submitted to the meeting of the GAERC immediately preceding the European

Council.

The Presidency intends to limit the agenda to the following items:

I. The Lisbon Strategy of economic, social and environmental renewal in Europe

[p.m. – International situation]

The European Council will also hear a progress report on work in the European Convention from its President, Mr. Valéry

Giscard d'Estaing.

The meeting will be preceded by an exposé by the President of the European Parliament, Mr. Pat Cox, followed by an

exchange of views.

I. ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL RENEWAL IN EUROPE

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• The European Council assumes, at its Spring meetings, the central role in setting the direction for the Union's

economic, social and environmental action in order to meet the objectives of the Lisbon strategy. Sustainable

development requires that economic, social and environmental considerations receive equal attention in policy-making

and implementation. The European Council will review progress achieved, discuss key issues, set priorities and give

guidance for future work. 2003 sees the Lisbon Strategy entering its fourth year. This next European Council, building

on the successes achieved in many areas but aware also of slow progress in others, must demonstrate ahead of

enlargement that it is capable of maintaining and accelerating the pace of reform and keeping the Union on track in a

balanced way across Lisbon's three main pillars – economic, social, and environmental.

Α. Economic context and policies

• The economic slowdown has lasted longer than anticipated and the outlook is clouded by economic uncertainties and

global political risks. Sustainable growth cannot be taken for granted; it is conditional on international developments but

also, and even more importantly, on a forceful implementation by Member States of the Lisbon reforms combined with

appropriate economic policies geared to maintaining macroeconomic stability.

The European Council is expected to address the following issues:

• orientations for establishing the next

broad economic policy guidelines

in the light of the key issues paper submitted

by the ECOFIN Council;

• strengthening

economic policy coordination

in the light of the Commission's Communication and the conclusions

by the ECOFIN Council;

• improving

statistical

and analytical tools for policy-making.

Β. Economic reforms to raise Europe's growth potential

Fostering entrepreneurship

• Growth, jobs and prosperity in an enlarged European Union depend on fostering entrepreneurship and improving the

overall business environment for European industry and for small firms. The European Council, in the light of the Green

Paper on Entrepreneurship and the communication on industrial policy in an enlarged Union, is expected to call for

further action in the following areas:

•

facilitating market entry and exit mechanisms

, so as to generate the right framework and cultural conditions for entrepreneurship and for small and medium sized

firms to start-up and grow; in this context, speeding up the implementation of the European Charter of Small Enterprises

and lending it greater focus;

•

improving regulation

and reducing administrative burdens at the Community and national levels, based on an active contribution from all

institutions to simplify, clarify and update the body of Community and national law;

• comprehensive

impact assessment

of proposed legislation and policy initiatives which affect industrial and business

competitiveness, including broad consultation of interested parties and taking into account the three pillars of the Lisbon

Strategy; in this context, ensuring that each Commission proposal includes an analysis of its potential impact on

industrial competitiveness;

•

• development of initiatives designed to

promote the value of entrepreneurship,

and for improved flow and use of

venture capital,

including removing obstacles to investment by institutional investors, including pension funds;

• elaboration of an action plan on better company law and

corporate governance

drawing on High Level group report

(Winter group).

Connecting Europe – completing and extending the internal market

• Α

well-functioning internal market, ensuring the free circulation of goods and persons and capable of bringing tangible

benefits to Europe's citizens and enterprises, remains a key element of the growth strategy. Work is already well

underway and good progress has been made since the last Spring European Council. The European Council is expected

to give new impetus to the completion and extension of an internal market for the new enlarged Europe by focussing on

the following issues:

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• improving the

speedy implementation and effective application

by Member States of legislation already agreed at

the EU level in accordance with commitments undertaken;

• giving guidance to ensure early final agreement at the EU level on pending internal market legislation within the

Lisbon strategy in relation to the

energy and transport

sectors;

• accelerating work to create integrated

financial services

and procurement markets, pushing forward the

internal

market for services

and efforts to tackle unfair tax competition;

•

services of general interest

, in the light of the Commission's Green Paper on consolidating the framework for their operation;

• the conditions needed in terms of "connectivity" (e.g. cross-border connections, TENs, ...) in energy, transport and

telecommunications infrastructure in order to complete and extend the internal market, especially in view of

enlargement.

Building the knowledge-based economy

• Increasing investment in research, innovation, education and skills, is key to creating a knowledge-based economy

and opening up opportunities for sustained growth, enterprise and new jobs. Equally important is enhancing the

economic and social returns on research and development by strengthening the links between knowledge and the

marketplace, and ensuring conditions are in place for the roll out of the broadband networks and services which support

a truly knowledge-based economy.

The European Council is expected to give impetus and guidance on the following issues:

• the implementation and deepening of the

European Research Area,

with emphasis on developing frontier and

leading-edge technologies, establishing clearer links between research and business, and encouraging mobility of

researchers. Use should be made, where appropriate, of the open method of coordination;

• achieving, on the basis of the Commission's forthcoming Action Plan, the objective for

investing in R&D

stimulating both public and private investment, while creating improved conditions for innovation through

inter alia

agreeing on a transparent, non-costly and non-discriminatory

Community patent;

• the development of the

information society,

drawing on the eEurope 2005 Action Plan considered by the European

Council in Seville, and the current situation in the telecommunications sector on the basis of the Commission's recent

Communication;

• implementation of the Action Plan on

biotechnology,

in particular the need to put current measures in place at a

national level in time and to rapidly finalise the pending legislative framework;

• implementation of the 10-year programme on the

objectives for education systems,

inter alia

by using benchmarks

to identify best practice and to ensure efficient and effective investment in human resources.

C. Modernising the European social model

Reforms for more and better jobs

• Attaining the ambitious employment targets of the Lisbon agenda requires improved policy instruments as well as

more efforts at national level. The review of the European Employment Strategy, and better synchronisation of economic

and employment policies, should both work in the direction of tackling Europe's employment deficit.

In this respect, the European Council is expected to:

• consider the

employment situation

in the Community on the basis of the Joint Employment Report;

• in the light of the Commission's communication and work in the Council, give guidance to ensure that the

revised

Employment Strategy,

as translated into new guidelines, becomes an effective and focussed instrument for bringing

about a high level of employment;

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• in this context, examine how to maintain the momentum of

reform of national labour markets;

this examination

could be linked to the work of a high level Task Force, leading to practical proposals for action;

• review ongoing efforts to improve the

quality of work

inter alia

maintaining effective health and safety

regulations and promoting life-long learning.

Solidarity and social cohesion

• Progress towards the Lisbon goals can only be achieved by moving ahead at the same time in the social field. The

orientations and measures proposed in the European Social Agenda remain valid. Particular attention should be given to

promoting social inclusion and to modernising social protection systems to meet the challenge of an ageing population.

This should include consideration of how existing work might be streamlined over time.

The European Council is expected to review progress in these areas and address as a matter of priority the following issues:

• the reforms necessary to secure sustainable and adequate systems for

pensions, health care and long term care for

the elderly

on the basis of the analysis and guidance given by the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer

Affairs Council and the ECOFIN Council;

• the improvement of the

overall framework for social protection policies

and of the national action plans on social

inclusion through a greater emphasis on the effectiveness of benefit systems and the identification of best practice.

In relation to employment and social protection issues, the European Council will take due account of the results of the

tripartite Social Summit, which will be linked from now on with the Spring European Council thus underscoring the

importance of the

dialogue between social partners

in achieving the goals of the Lisbon Strategy.

D. Sustainable development for future prosperity: the environmental dimension

• The task of the 2003 Spring European Council will be to give fresh impetus to the implementation of the

comprehensive sustainable development strategy launched by the Göteborg European Council, including the

environmental dimension that it added to the Lisbon Strategy, by identifying key priorities for immediate action in

certain sectors and by reinforcing the instruments available to the Union to pursue its overall objective.

Bearing in mind the need for overall coherence between internal and external policies and commitments, the European

Council is expected to:

–– on the internal level:

• highlight the measures to be taken in order to accelerate efforts to

address unsustainable trends

in sectors such as

energy, climate change, natural resources and transport; as regards the latter, move in the direction of ensuring that the

price of using different modes of transport better reflects costs to society;

•

• examine how

environmental technologies

can play their full role in stimulating growth, jobs and a better

environment, in particular, by ensuring the right incentives for such technologies are in place, as well as how to improve

and extend the use of

economic instruments

to attain environmental objectives;

• consider the ways and means of making sure that sustainability is properly addressed in policy formulation and

implementation, including through

impact assessment,

by further improving

structural indicators

and monitoring of

progress in each sector.

–– on the external level:

• examine how the Union can keep its leading role in

promoting sustainable development

on a global scale, by

making globalisation work for sustainable development (Doha), ensuring that the commitments on financing for

development are respected (Monterrey), and contributing to translate into concrete actions the political ambitions of

WSSD (Johannesburg).

• Regarding maritime safety, and following recent events and in the light of the Commission's report, the European

Council is expected to:

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• call on the Institutions and the Member States to take all necessary steps to ensure that the

measures on maritime

safety

announced at the Council December 2002 are speedily and effectively implemented in all their aspects.

P.M. Message for enlargement countries

• The future Member States have been covered for the first time in the Commission's Spring Report. They are adopting

Lisbon measures, participating in many Lisbon programmes and are starting to take part in the open method of

coordination. The Lisbon Strategy is therefore as relevant for those countries as it is for the current Member States. It

offers common solutions to common problems. While recognising the ambitious nature of the Strategy for an enlarged

Union, the European Council will consider how the strategy can best be used to support the process of enlargement and

share best practice and experience across the Union.

P.M. – INTERNATIONAL SITUATION