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Europaudvalget 2007-08 (2. samling)
Det Europæiske Råd 13-14/3-08 Bilag 2
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COUNCIL OF

THE EUROPEAN UNION

Brussels, 19 February 2008

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POLGEN 14

NOTE

from :

to :

Subject

Presidency

Coreper

European Council (13 and 14 March 2008)

– Draft conclusions

The Presidency hereby submits to Coreper draft conclusions to be agreed by the European Council

at its meeting on 13 and 14 March 2008.

The text will continue to be updated in the light of work underway in relevant Council formations.

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Executive Summary

The meeting of the European Council was preceded by an exposé by the President of the European

Parliament, Mr Hans-Gert Pöttering, followed by an exchange of views.

LAUNCHING THE NEW CYCLE OF THE RENEWED LISBON STRATEGY FOR

GROWTH AND JOBS (2008-2010)

6,5 million jobs created in the last two years, an employment rate closer to the 70% target,

productivity growth higher than the annual rate of 1,2% registered between 2000 and 2005

and growth at 2,9% in 2007 all demonstrate that the Lisbon Strategy – refocused on growth

and jobs and based on enhanced partnership and ownership – is working and delivering

results.

Further to the Commission's Strategic Report and in the light of work in the relevant Council

formations the European Council launches the second three-year cycle of the Strategy by



confirming that the current Integrated Guidelines (BEPGs and Employment Guidelines)

remain valid and should serve for the period 2008-2010. The Council (ECOFIN and

EPSCO) is invited to formally adopt the Integrated Guidelines in accordance with the

Treaty;

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

endorsing the country-specific recommendations for the economic and employment

policies of the Member States and the Euro area as drawn up by the Council on the basis

of the Commission's proposals. It calls on the Member States to ensure that their

National Reform Programmes are up-to-date for the coming cycle in line with these

recommendations and the Integrated Guidelines and to include in their annual progress

reports a statement presenting the detailed and concrete measures taken to address the

country-specific recommendations. The Commission is invited to continue working

with Member States to develop a clear methodology for the monitoring and evaluation

of Lisbon reforms;



urging the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council, within their spheres

of competence, to drive forward work on the 10 objectives identified in the Community

Lisbon Programme, which provides a strategic reform agenda for the Community part

of the renewed Lisbon Strategy.

The focus of the new cycle will be on implementation. The European Council therefore:



reconfirms the four priority areas agreed at its Spring 2006 meeting as the cornerstones

of the renewed Lisbon Strategy and at the same time calls for synergies among them to

be exploited to a greater degree;



invites the Commission and Member States to step up the exchange of best practices

within the four priority areas in the context of multilateral surveillance, as well as to

strengthen the involvement of other relevant stakeholders in the Lisbon process;



recognises the role of the local and regional level in delivering growth and jobs;

increased ownership of the growth and jobs agenda at all levels of government will lead

to more coherent and effective policymaking;

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

emphasises the contribution of economic, social and territorial cohesion to the Lisbon

agenda and welcomes the progress made in reorienting cohesion funds in support of

national reform programmes and implementation of the Integrated Guidelines. In total,

some € 70 bn of cohesion funding will be mobilised annually up to 2013 in support of

growth and jobs. Now that the programming phase has been completed, the European

Council calls on Member States to ensure that expenditure reflects the earmarking

commitments made;



underlines the importance of macro-economic stability in addressing longer-term

challenges ahead. The EU budgetary framework, as defined by the revised Stability and

Growth Pact, provides the appropriate tools in this regard. The European Council calls

on Member States not yet at their medium-term budgetary objective to reduce their

deficits and debt in line with the requirements of the Stability and Growth Pact.

Countries that have reached their medium-term objectives should maintain their

structural efforts;



agrees the concrete actions set out below. In this connection, the European Council

endorses the key messages from the Council in its ECOFIN, Competitiveness,

Employment and Social Policy, Environment and Education and Youth formations, as

well as the Council conclusions on the Single Market Review.

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Investing in knowledge and innovation

A key factor for future growth is the full development of the potential for innovation and

creativity of European citizens built on European culture and excellence in science. Since the

relaunch of the Lisbon Strategy, joint efforts have led to significant achievements in the areas

of research, knowledge and innovation. The implementation of the broad-based innovation

strategy remains key to realising EU ambitions in the area. However, further efforts must be

made with a view to investing more and more effectively in research, creativity, innovation

and higher education and achieving the 3% R&D investment target. The European Council

highlights the following actions on which the Member States and the Community are urged to

make swift progress:



Member States are invited to set out in their National Reform Programmes how

progress towards national R&D investment targets will be achieved and how their R&D

strategies will contribute to realising the European Research Area;



key projects, such as GALILEO, EIT, the European Research Council, the Risk-Sharing

Finance Facility and the Joint Technology Initiatives must be swiftly implemented/set

up and decisions should be taken on further research projects;



scientific e-infrastructure and high-speed internet usage must be significantly increased;

With a view to high-speed internet penetration in Europe reaching 30%, Member States

should aim to make high-speed internet available to all schools by 2010 and to set

ambitious national targets for household access as part of their National Reform

Programmes;



promotion of an EU-wide market for venture capital for the most innovative companies.

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In order to become a truly modern and competitive economy, the EU must remove barriers to

the free movement of knowledge by creating a

"fifth freedom"

based on fostering scientific

excellence, launching a new generation of world-class research facilities, removing legal and

administrative obstacles to the cross-border mobility of researchers, as well as students,

scientists, and university teaching staff and further implementing higher education reforms.

European researchers' labour market should be rendered more open and competitive,

providing better career structures, transparency and family-friendliness. It should encourage

open access to knowledge and open innovation, as well as facilitate and promote the optimal

use of intellectual property created in public research organisations so as to increase

knowledge transfer to industry.

Unlocking the business potential, especially of SMEs

Decisions taken since the renewal of the Lisbon Strategy have started to improve conditions

for market players. It has become easier to set up a business as all Member States have

established one-stop shops to facilitate registration and reduce paperwork. The European

Council welcomes the progress made during 2007 on better regulation and considers that

further efforts are needed in order to highlight its crucial role in improving the

competitiveness of EU business, in particular SMEs. To ensure that the better regulation

initiative delivers real and substantial economic benefits:



efforts on reducing administrative burdens by 25% by 2012 should be stepped up and

corresponding national targets and processes established;

"fast track" legislative proposals should be adopted and simplification rolling

programme continue to be implemented;

more should be done to develop the capacity of EU institutions on impact assessment.

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The

Single Market

remains a crucial driver for enhancing living standards of European

citizens and Europe's competitiveness in the globalised economy. In order to further improve

the functioning of the Single Market and to tap its full potential, the following measures and

actions need to be taken forward as immediate priorities:



ensure effective follow-up to the Commission's Single Market Review with a focus on

actions needed to boost growth and jobs by removing remaining barriers to the four

freedoms. In this context market developments should be monitored in order to

prioritise action in markets where there are genuine and significant barriers to market

functioning and competition;



continue efforts to liberalise network industries (energy, electronic communications)

and to adopt the adequate regulatory frameworks;

ensure a complete, coherent, and timely transposition and implementation of the

Services Directive which is an important step towards the creation of a genuine single

market for services.

Small and medium sized enterprises

(SMEs) form the backbone of European economy and

have the potential to contribute significantly to creating more growth and jobs in the European

Union. In order to reinforce the Union's SMEs policy, the following actions are of immediate

importance:



a Small Business Act Initiative setting out an integrated approach across the SMEs' life

cycle, in line with Better Regulation and Think Small First principles, should be

developed to further strengthen SMEs' competitiveness;



the introduction, where justified and following screening of the acquis communautaire,

of exemptions for SMEs from the administrative requirements of EU legislation;

strengthened support of research-performing and innovative SMEs with high growth

potential, for example through a new European private company statute;

further facilitation of access to finance, including through existing EU financial

instruments.

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Open markets and a sound international environment contribute to growth and jobs. The EU

should therefore continue its endeavours to shape globalisation by reinforcing the global

dimension of the renewed Lisbon strategy. The European Council welcomes the

Commission's intention to report annually on market access, identifying countries and sectors

where significant barriers remain and believes that the EU should continue its endeavours to:



improve the multilateral trading system, in particular by promoting a balanced and

global agreement in the Doha Development Round;

conclude ambitious bilateral agreements with important trading partners and develop a

common economic area with neighbouring countries and candidate countries;

secure reliable access to energy and to strategic raw materials;

strengthen existing economic relations and develop mutually beneficial strategic

partnerships with emerging economic powers;

foster regulatory cooperation, convergence of standards and an effective Intellectual

Property Rights enforcement system against counterfeiting.

Investing in people and modernising labour markets

10.

The education element of the knowledge triangle "research-innovation-education" should be

strengthened. Providing high-quality education and investing more and more effectively in

human capital throughout people's lives are crucial conditions for Europe's success in a

globalised world. This can bridge and facilitate the movement towards a "knowledge-based

economy", create more and better jobs and contribute to sound fiscal positions. They are also

effective ways of fighting inequality and poverty and can contribute to reducing youth

unemployment.

11.

In this context the European Council looks forward to the Commission's proposal for a

renewed Social Agenda which will take account of Europe's new social realities and cover

issues such as youth, education, migration and demography. In view of increasing skills

shortages in a number of sectors, it invites the Commission to present a comprehensive

assessment of the future skills requirements in Europe up to 2020, taking account of the

impacts of technological change and ageing populations and to propose steps to anticipate

future needs.

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12.

The European Council urges Member States to take concrete action to:



substantially reduce the number of young people who cannot read properly and the

number of early school leavers, and improve the achievement levels of learners with a

migrant background;



attract more adults, particularly low-skilled and older workers into education and

training to further facilitate geographic and occupational mobility;

promote further overall labour force participation and tackle segmentation in order to

ensure active social integration;

improve policy consistency and coordination in order to enhance social cohesion.

13.

Flexicurity strikes a balance between flexibility and security on the labour market and helps

both employees and employers to seize the opportunities globalisation offers. In line with the

recommendations of social partners of October 2007, the European Council calls on the

Member States to implement the agreed common principles on flexicurity by defining

comprehensive national flexicurity arrangements within their National Reform Programmes

by the end of 2008. Flexibility and security are required throughout the life cycle. In this

context, intergenerational solidarity should be considered within all four components of

flexicurity. Continued attention needs to be given to youth employment, and in particular to

the transition from education to employment in the context of the implementation of the

European Youth Pact. The availability and affordability of quality child care should be

increased in line with national and Community targets. Efforts should be pursued to

substantially reduce gender pay gaps and to implement the European Pact for Gender

Equality.

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Synergies for a low carbon economy

14.

The transition into a low carbon economy will have an impact on numerous policies and on

the economic and daily life of the citizens. Specific actions are listed below under a separate

heading "Climate change and Energy" but coherent policies relating to energy and climate

change are also needed in the other three priority areas of the Lisbon Strategy, including:



developing coherent R&D and innovation policies on the European and national levels;

unlocking the business potential of eco-industries and developing a sustainable

industrial policy and sustainable and globally competitive lead markets, while taking

into account the impact of ECC measures on competitiveness;



educating the consumer about the efficient use of energy in order to tackle social

impacts and opportunities of ECC.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY

15.

Last year historic commitments on climate and energy policy were made, this year the

challenge will be to deliver. The Spring 2007 European Council agreed on ambitious

commitments for climate protection and renewable energies. In December of last year the Bali

Climate Conference made an important breakthrough and launched an inclusive international

negotiating process on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions after 2012. Europe is

committed to maintaining international leadership on climate change and energy and to

keeping up the momentum of negotiations on the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change. The objective is to secure an ambitious and comprehensive post-Kyoto

agreement on climate change at Copenhagen in 2009. By delivering on its own targets for

reducing greenhouse gas emissions and boosting the use of renewable energy it will make a

major contribution to this objective.

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(to be completed in the light of the outcome of forthcoming Councils)

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THE STABILITY OF FINANCIAL MARKETS

16.

The global economic outlook has deteriorated recently as a result of a slowdown of economic

activity in the US, higher oil and commodity prices, and ongoing turbulence on the financial

markets. That is why the Union, apart from pressing ahead with the implementation of the key

elements of the renewed Lisbon Strategy, must take steps to strengthen the transparency and

functioning of financial markets and further improve the supervisory and regulatory

environment both within the EU and globally.

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(to be completed after ECOFIN on 4 March)

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (if necessary)

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