- Title: BELGIUM: BARROSO HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR SINGLE EUROPEAN MARKET FOR SERVICES.
- Date: 15th March 2005
- Summary: (EU) BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (MARCH 14, 2005) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. GV (LAS): RESIDENCE PALACE BUILDING 0.04 2. MV/PAN/GV: PRESIDENT OF THE EU COMMISSION JOSE MANUEL BARROSO ARRIVING AND BEING GREETED BY PEOPLE FROM THE "LISBON COUNCIL" ASSOCIATION (2 SHOTS) 0.13 3. CU/PAN: WALL COVERED WITH LISBON COUNCIL POSTERS PAN TO CONFERENCE ROOM 0.21 4. MV/PAN/CU: BARROSO ENTERING CONFERENCE ROOM TO APPLAUSE; BARROSO SITTING DOWN (2 SHOTS) 0.40 5. EXTRACT FROM PROMOTIONAL VIDEO SHOWN ON SCREEN IN CONFERENCE ROOM 0.48 6. MV/ZOOM OUT/GV: BARROSO STANDING UP AND TAKING THE STAND; AUDIENCE (2 SHOTS) 0.57 7. (SOUNDBITE)(English) JOSE MANUEL BARROSO, PRESIDENT OF THE EU COMMISSION, SAYING: "Would it be possible for a new Commission for instance to forget about the Lisbon process and take as priority another more glamorous issue? I know, we know perfectly well at the European Commission that a lot of this does not depend on the Commission but depends on the Member States. But we want to be the catalyst for change. If we will say no, it is after all not our creation. We were not there when it was created in Lisbon 2000, it was a decision of the Member States. If we want to reconnect the European citizens, the European institutions, we should address those matters that are most important for them, employment and the economic situation in their countries. Those are in all our Member States, the first priorities for the citizens." 1.46 8. CU/LV: WOMAN IN AUDIENCE; BARROSO GIVING SPEECH (2 SHOTS) 1.56 9. (SOUNDBITE)(English) BARROSO SAYING: "With the re-launch of the Lisbon Agenda, our role should be to open up opportunities for growth in those areas where greatest potential exist. Today, the greatest unexploited potential clearly lies in services. If we are not able to tap this potential, European workers and consumers will be the real losers." 2.16 10. LV/GV: BARROSO GIVING SPEECH (2 SHOTS) 2.23 11. (SOUNDBITE)(English) BARROSO SAYING: "One of the problems that we have today in Europe is that some people have not yet changed a chip to a enlarged Europe. They still think in terms of a Europe of 15, not yet in terms of a Europe of 25. And some people think that the Commission is there to protect the fifteen against the new 10, and that's not. The Commission is there to protect the general interests of Europe." 2.50 12. GV: BARROSO LEAVING THE STAND, PEOPLE APPLAUDING 2.57 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 30th March 2005 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Reuters ID: LVA943P2O3N5EDQXYN6G8EZYY8RE
- Story Text: Head of EU Commission Jose Barroso highlights need
for a single European market for services.
EU leaders, due to meet in Brussels on March 22 and
23, face a tough task of reconciling the 25-member bloc's
high social welfare spending with ambitions of becoming the
world's most competitive region, overtaking the United
States.
In a keynote speech ahead of the summit , the President
of the European Commission Jose Barroso said on Monday
(March 14) the EU risks missing out on its best chance to
boost growth and create jobs if it does not create a single
market for services.
The creation of such a market is hampered by the
concerns of some of Europe's top economies like France and
Germany that it would fuel "social dumping" as companies would move to
countries with the lowest social protection
and tax costs.
"Today the greatest growth and employment potential
clearly lies in services. If we are not able to tap this
potential European workers and consumers will be the real
losers," Barroso said in a speech at the Lisbon Council
association.
Barroso has made boosting growth and employment in the
EU through a revamped plan called the "Lisbon Agenda" a
priority of his five-year term at the helm of the EU
executive body.
The ultimate aim is to make Europe a more attractive
place to live and work than the United States, but even
though the initial Lisbon Agenda was agreed in 2000,
progress to meet its numerous goals has been slow.
The European Union economy is forecast to grow by 2.3
percent this year, against 3.0 percent in the United States.
"One of the problems that we have today in Europe is
that some people have not yet changed a chip to a enlarged
Europe. They still think in terms of a Europe of 15, not
yet in terms of a Europe of 25", Barroso said. " And some
people think that the Commission is there to protect the
fifteen against the new 10, and that's not. The Commission
is there to protect the general interests of Europe." he
added
A single EU services market would allow citizens of one
EU country to easily buy services from a company based in
another EU state. But some EU states fear companies would
move to lowest -cost states, and that the quality of
general interest services like health could suffer.
Barroso said such concerns should be addressed but
should not stop the creation of a single market for
services.
Barroso said that according to studies a single EU
market for services would boost real wages by 0.4 percent,
make prices drop by 7.2 percent on average, and create a
net gain of 600,000 jobs in the union.
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