Below are comments from MEPs Sharon Bowles and Pervenche Berès following the launch of the Commission’s EU2020 blueprint.

haron Bowles (ALDE, UK), chair of the EP Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee

« I agree that we need to work together for a strategy which would help us to come out stronger from the crisis and turn the EU into a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy delivering high levels of employment, productivity and social cohesion. But we should not fool ourselves into thinking this is easy or comes just because we declare it.

The ECON committee will play an active part in the debate and in formulating and implementing this strategy. The ECON Committee will focus on aspects relating to improving economic governance, in particular in the EMU, the sustainability and the quality of public finances, fiscal policy coordination and reforming the financial system at the EU-level and globally.

During the hearing with the then Commissioner-designate Olli Rehn, the committee received a commitment that the Commission will make a proposal on how to improve economic governance taking into account past experiences. It is clear that new, stronger oversight tools must be developed and the committee will play its role in assisting this process. »

Pervenche Berès (S&D, FR), rapporteur for the Temporary Committee on the Financial, Economic and Social Crisis

« The Commission’s communication is the result of a theoretical exercise which is disconnected from the crisis which the EU is currently going through. Following a long description of the objectives to be reached by 2020, exiting the crisis is only mentioned on page 22 of the communication!

The « new agenda for skills and jobs » focuses on increasing the rate of employment but says nothing about how new jobs should be created.

A positive aspect of note is the desire to merge the annual evaluation of Member State’s progress in achieving the agreed objectives with the evaluation dealing with improving budgetary positions. I call on the Council to maintain this improvement. »

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The EP will play a major role in the elaboration of this strategy, especially on the legislative front where it shares decision making powers with the Council in most fields.

A background note to the EP’s work in the areas feeding into the strategy as well as comments from various MEPs on their expectations for the EU2020 strategy can be found on the EP’s press service website