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BusinessEurope President Pierre Gattaz said: “The recovery instrument, 'Next Generation EU', set out by the Commission today can ensure that Europe plays its full role in providing a strong and suitable financial response to the current crisis. If adopted by member states, it will help boost investment, protect jobs and reduce business closures.
Besides the strong focus on green and digital transitions, we welcome the strengthening of key industrial value chains and ecosystems. This will be crucial in re-launching and modernising Europe’s economy and at the same time help to provide an effective and efficient support to our broad industrial base.
Financial support needs to be accompanied by the right policy framework. It is essential to allow the EU economy to reach its full potential. The crisis has shown that our European Single Market needs to be strengthened. Merely restoring it to the pre-crisis levels will not be enough to fuel Europe’s recovery and strategic success. Therefore, further action on digitalisation and further opening of the services markets, among others, will be needed.
The European business community shares the desire of the Commission for the European Union to have a stable long-term funding source. However, we are concerned that proposals for new own resources could significantly increase costs for businesses. Additional taxes and costs for companies would be particularly harmful and should be avoided in present circumstances.
It is essential that the Council agrees on the new EU multiannual financial framework and recovery instrument before the summer break to ensure the funds can have the greatest impact in supporting the recovery.
As a European social partner, BusinessEurope will aim to make sure that the resources gathered are used effectively, notably in support of long-term economic growth and employment-enhancing reforms.
Last, but not least, trade will play a key role in the recovery phase and the EU must maintain close cooperation with its trading partners as well as multilateral institutions like the IMF, the WHO and the WTO.”