Ministers support European industry in times of crisis
At today’s meeting of the Competitiveness Council in Brussels, Ministers responsible for the area of industry and the internal market discussed measures to support enterprises in these times of economic downturn.
The first topic on the agenda was the issue of an integrated approach to a competitive and sustainable EU industry policy. The Council Conclusions adopted by the Ministers on this topic particularly highlight the need to create a stable and predictable environment for entrepreneurial activities in the EU and consistently asses the impacts of the adopted legislation on European industry.
“We must create conditions for European enterprises that minimise the threat of the relocation of their production to countries where such EU regulatory measures do not apply. Stability, predictability and careful assessment of the impacts are the three main principles that should guide the creation of the legal framework for European industry,” said Czech Minister of Industry and Trade and President of the Competitiveness Council Vladimír Tošovský.
In the Conclusions that were adopted on the “Better Regulation” initiative the Council underscored the importance of improving the regulatory framework and the transparency of the legislation for the competitiveness of European enterprises The Ministers appreciated the current activities of the European Commission, which has already proposed to annul 1300 pieces of outdated legislation.
On the initiative of Member States the Council addressed the book digitisation project of the American company Google. The Ministers called on the European Commission to asses the current situation and, as the case may be, to propose what measures should be adopted to address the issue of protecting the copyright of European authors.
Furthermore, the Council assessed the development of the implementation of the priorities of the Action Plan for the European Small Business Act. The Ministers appreciated that in the past months credit support programmes for entrepreneurs were initiated, particularly by the European Investment Bank that increased the volume of loans for small and medium-sized businesses by 30 billion euros for the next two years. Another positive aspect is the lowering of VAT rates for certain services, that was secured by the Czech Presidency during demanding negotiations and the initiation of negotiations on the directive on late payments.
To conclude, Minister Tošovský introduced the development in the negotiations on the EU patenting system during the Czech Presidency. The Council consequently agreed with the Presidency proposal to allow for a re-examination by the European Court of Justice of the compatibility of the agreement on a single court system for solving patent disputes. The successful conclusion of such an agreement will allow European enterprises to solve their disputes regarding European patents in a more efficient manner and lower their dispute-related costs
Contact:
- Tomáš Bartovský, Spokesman of the Ministry of Industry and Trade
- Tel.: +420 224 853 311, GSM: +420 602 508 328, E-mail: bartovsky@mpo.cz
Last update: 16.8.2011 15:20
