EUROPEAN STRATEGY:THE GOVERNMENT has asserted domestic primacy over economic policy in the face of repeated calls for deeper co-ordination from top officials in Brussels, among them European Council president Herman Van Rompuy.
In a submission to the European Commission for talks on the parameters of the EU’s new 10-year economic plan, Dublin shows little appetite for measures that would bind the Government to targets set by EU leaders in the union’s new strategy.
After calls from the incoming commission for an injection of “spine and rigour” into the monitoring of policy, the Government has declared in a submission on the plan to the EU executive that it wants to avoid an “overly-burdensome” approach.
“Within an overall EU2020 strategy framework, individual member states should select their own mix of domestic policies best suited to their circumstances and reflective of engagement with national stakeholders,” a paper of “initial observations” from Dublin states. “Ireland is of the view that the focus for the EU2020 strategy should primarily be on overall outcomes rather than strict adherence to meeting specific targets in each sectoral area.”
The Government’s promotion of these modest parameters is at odds with the thrust of debate on the strategy in Brussels, which has been dominated by talk of deeper co-ordination and increased policy surveillance. Taoiseach Brian Cowen will discuss the new economic strategy in Madrid next Monday with his Spanish counterpart José Luis Zapatero, whose country holds the union’s six-month rotating presidency. Mr Zapatero recently suggested that sanctions should be imposed on states that breach their obligations under the new plan.
Their meeting comes as European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso seeks support for measures that would empower his executive to issue public warnings and policy recommendations to countries that fall short of targets set out in the plan. Mr Van Rompuy also favours stronger co-ordination in a plan to succeed the failed Lisbon Strategy, the previous 10-year programme which was noted for high ambition and a welter of missed targets.
In his first major speech since taking office, Mr Van Rompuy said three weeks ago that ways must be found to enhance “shared commitment”, particularly in the euro zone. Rejecting the “rather soft” instruments of peer review and benchmarking that were deployed in the Lisbon Strategy, he said such instruments were useful means to collect and compare data, but did not on their own create political commitment.
However, the Government noted that target-setting and the “open method” of co-ordination – based on voluntary co-operation – were cornerstones of the strategy.
The Government said further structural reforms to increase productivity were essential to tackle the long-term socio-economic challenges facing the EU. “Importantly, this vision must be understandable to its citizens,” it said.
