This week’s key events presented by Euronews’ senior finance and defence reporter Jack Schickler.
Key diary dates
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Monday 2 September: European Parliament begins work after summer recess.
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Monday 2 September: President von der Leyen in Slovenia with Prime Minister Robert Golob, delivers keynote speech at the Bled Strategic Forum.
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Wednesday 4 September: Former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi to present findings on competitiveness to the European Parliament’s conference of presidents.
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Wednesday 4 – Thursday 5 September: Annual meetings of think tank Bruegel to launch memos to EU’s 2024-2029 leadership.
In spotlight
Mario Draghi’s long-awaited – and long-delayed – report into European competitiveness is due to get an outing this week at a gathering of key MEPs.
The former Italian Prime Minister will present his main findings to the European Parliament’s conference of presidents on Wednesday (4 September), and the report itself will be published on an as-yet-unspecified date shortly after.
Draghi was handed the task last September by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and it was originally expected for June.
His proposals come at a key moment of institutional renewal, as she sets out structures and portfolios for her second term in office, and von der Leyen clearly takes the topic seriously.
Her political guidelines, a sort of manifesto presented to MEPs as she sought a second term in July, mention the word “competitiveness” 22 times; her previous version back in 2019 did so just three times. That comes given a backlash – particularly from the political right – against the potential impact on growth of EU green laws that dominated her first term, and given fears that the likes of China and the US are unfairly competing via massive subsidies to low-carbon tech.
Draghi gave a foretaste of his findings in a speech in April, where he warned of the need to transform the EU economy, amid a “cutthroat” global race where other competitors weren’t playing by the rules.
He vaunted an industrial strategy in areas like defence, an integrated market for public goods like telecoms, finance and energy, and more government support in securing essential resources – from minerals to labour.
And if all this is giving you deja vu, you’re forgiven.
In his own report which issued in April, after a lengthy rant about the state of the European train network, ex-Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta set out the need for Europe to strengthen economic growth, warned of unfair competition from overseas, and urged reforms in areas like defence, telecoms, finance and energy. Sound familiar?
The duplication is likely due to Brussels’ favourite pastime: institutional squabbling. Letta’s report was requested by EU member states, and by the European Council led by Charles Michel; Draghi was nominated by Michel’s rival von der Leyen, and has been aided by officials in the Commission’s internal think tank DG IDEA.
But the hope will be that, at the very least, Draghi’s findings set the tenor for the next mandate.
With European Commissioner portfolios for the coming five years yet to be assigned, the battle for who gets key roles linked to economics and competitiveness is fierce, perhaps because member states realise it will be the theme tune for the next five years.
But, like Letta, Draghi may run into a brick wall: the EU’s member states, who have repeatedly rejected previous attempts to reform sensitive markets, such as by appointing centralised European supervisors.
Draghi’s words are likely to resound around Brussels. We’ll have to see if their echo is heard further away in national capitals.
Policy newsmakers
EU’s next Green Guru?
When Teresa Ribera was first tipped as Spain’s choice for the next European Commission, it seemed clear that she would oversee a strong green portfolio, given her experience as Minister for Ecological Transition and her popularity in Brussels on environmental issues. But another contender has joined the roster: Danish Dan Jørgensen, an MEP between 2004 and 2013 and currently serving as Minister for Development Cooperation and Global Climate Policy. While Ribera seems to be eyeing a VP seat and has not earmarked the environmental portfolio specifically – referring instead to her wish to address “current challenges” during her mandate – Denmark’s nomination shows the country’s desire to address climate and environmental issues over the next five years. Who will be the next ‘Green Guru’ in Brussels?
