Confederation comments on the strategy Europe 2020

In 2010, the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic welcomed the new EU strategy for growth and employment Europe 2020. In the meantime, the Confederation has repeatedly expressed some doubts about the strategy’s too ambitious aims and a large number of priorities.

In March 2014, the European Commission published an evaluation report to the strategy Europe 2020 (COM (2014)130). The Confederation of Industry engaged in the process of strategy’s revision and now, it has worked out a position statement to it.

In the opinion of the Confederation, the strategy Europe 2020 contains too many priorities, conflicting objectives and inconsistencies as to the proposed measures. The system of EU flagship initiatives, for example, is not transparent enough and the initiatives are lacking in interconnection and interaction.

The target on 75-percent employment can’t be achieved because of inconsequent reform efforts in some EU member countries. The EU target on poverty has been controversial from the beginning and the indicators for it had been hardly to be found.

The target on 3-percent of EU GDP investment in research and development has been chronically not fulfilled for many years. The measures concerning the energy and climate package represent a classic example of EU politics‘ incohesion and the aims‘ contradiction.

The Confederation is persuaded that it is necessary to reconsider the target on having 40 percent of tertiary educated people in the category 30-34 years in 2020. The target is too focused on quantity and there is much imbalance as to the promotion of higher education and preparation to it.

The strategy Europe 2020 is a qualitative shift in comparison to the Lisbon strategy but its revision is necessary. The largest disappointment prevails in job creation. The strategy has to be focused on growth and competitiveness. It is necessary to maintain the target on 3-percent of EU GDP investment in research and development.

The Confederation of Industry prefers the competitiveness of industry. The share of EU industry in GDP should be 20 percent and the energy and climate package should not undermine EU competitiveness.