Thank you, madam convener. Good morning to all distinguished members of the Scottish Parliament. I have some introductory remarks on the priorities of the Italian presidency and on what we have achieved so far.
While presenting the priorities of the Italian presidency of the Council, Prime Minister Renzi stressed that it is a unique opportunity to discover the true soul of Europe and the profound meaning of our life together. With this spirit, Italy has engaged enthusiastically in this particular and atypical presidency that takes place against a background of deep institutional change and at the beginning of a new legislative cycle. Despite the objective limits of this transitional phase, it is a key period for setting the strategic priorities for the EU institutions for the next five years. The Italian presidency is acting as a catalyst for policy change to allow Europe to return to a path of sustainable growth and restore citizens’ confidence in the Europe project. We want to turn the present phase, the beginning of a new political cycle, into a fresh start for Europe.
During the past three years, all EU member states, including those who are in and out of the euro, have been focusing on assuring fiscal consolidation and deficit reduction. At the national level, we have initiated important structural reforms in order to recuperate competitiveness, but that is not enough to address the deep malaise of our peoples, who were dramatically affected by the recession and now fear for their future and the future of their children. The malaise is so deep that it resulted in the rise of europhobic parties all over Europe at the last European elections. The motto of the Italian presidency is, “Europe, a fresh start”. Our main aim is to create a better, stronger and more effective Europe.
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We have reasons to be confident. In June, the European Council started to address European citizens’ concerns by agreeing the “Strategic Agenda for the Union in Times of Change”, which was presented by the new President of the European Commission, President Juncker. We considered that to be an important achievement at the political and institutional level. For the first time, the appointment of the new President of the European Commission has been clearly linked to a number of strategic priorities that have been agreed by member states. At a time when the candidate to the top job of the Commission was selected on the basis of a process that some member states considered to be controversial, it was necessary to reaffirm the central role of the member states in the signing of the working agenda at EU level to facilitate a common and coherent organisation of the work among the EU institutions.
There are basically three priorities of the Italian presidency: a job-friendly Europe delivering economic growth; moving Europe closer to its citizens in the area of democracy, rights and freedom; and a stronger and more global role for Europe in foreign policy. Now that we are in the middle of our presidency, the time is right for a state-of-play assessment of what has been achieved so far in those three areas and what remains on the agenda for the next three months.
I will first speak about growth and jobs. With more than 26 million people unemployed in Europe, the Italian presidency is focusing on creating more jobs and fostering growth as the two main drivers of EU economic policy; implementing the youth employment initiative; relaunching the EU 2020 strategy; deepening and strengthening the economic monetary union; boosting competitiveness in the EU; implementing the digital single market; promoting an industrial renaissance; and achieving an EU common position on the 2030 climate and energy package.
It should not come as a surprise that, on almost every single topic that I have just mentioned, today more than ever, Italy and the UK share a similar approach to the policies that are needed at EU level to deliver economic growth and jobs and to move Europe closer to its citizens. That is especially true of the need to fully exploit the potential of the single market in all its dimensions, including the market of products, the market of services and the digital single market. We need to reduce unnecessary administrative burdens and cut red tape for SMEs; support open and fair trade and strategic partnerships; and make progress in the economic monetary union while respecting the integrity of the single market and preserving transparency and openness towards non-EU countries. We need to promote climate and energy policy on issues such as affordable energy for companies and citizens, secure energy for our countries and green energy as an engine for growth.
Although we recognise that the specific concerns that the United Kingdom has raised about the future development of the EU will need to be addressed, as stated at the European Council last June, the Italian presidency thinks that, today, the EU must be flexible enough to be able to support and to act as a multiplier of national Governments’ efforts through effective European policies and investments. The UK is an essential and indispensable partner in the achievement of those goals given the decisive added value that the UK has always provided in key moments of the life of the EU. As Prime Minister Matteo Renzi recently stated in the European Parliament,
“A Europe without the United Kingdom would not simply be a less rich Europe, it would be less Europe, less itself”.
Together, we can work effectively to shape a better and smarter Europe that is less intrusive and more efficient.
I move on to progress that has been achieved on growth and jobs. The Italian presidency is focusing all its efforts on tackling the scourge of youth unemployment, including through an effective implementation of the youth guarantee scheme. Given the alarmingly high level of youth unemployment, in Milan yesterday, the Italian presidency hosted a European summit on unemployment and growth as a follow-up to the summits that were previously held in Paris and Berlin. Following a clear European road map, the Italian presidency is working in all Council formations to redirect the action of the EU towards the strengthening of the real economy.
Our objective is to boost competitiveness while tackling social exclusion and enhancing the social dimension of the EMU. On those issues, the presidency is promoting political debates within the sectoral councils, with a view to a final report by the presidency as a contribution to the review of the EU 2020 strategy. The report will also address the need for closer links between the EU 2020 strategy and the European semester, and for a better balance between the real and the financial economy.
We are pressing to start the new legislative cycle with a clear strategic commitment to completing the single market. Information and communication technology and digital technologies are powerful tools to modernise our economies while creating highly qualified jobs. On 8 and 9 July, Italy hosted the high-level Digital Venice conference, with the participation of important political and business leaders. The conference sent out the clear message that boosting competitiveness in Europe can be achieved only by developing the digital agenda and by completing the digital single market and integrating it in the EU 2020 strategy.
The Italian presidency is working hard on the political framework for climate and energy for 2030, in order to agree an EU common position at the October European Council.
The second objective is to move Europe closer to its citizens. The strategic agenda for the EU states:
“The May 2014 European elections open a new legislative cycle. This moment of political renewal comes precisely as our countries emerge from years of economic crisis and as public disenchantment with politics has grown. It is the right time to set out what we want the Union to focus on and how we want it to function.”
Italy entirely and whole-heartedly subscribes to those words and considers the second set of priorities as the core of our presidency. It might be articulated as follows: a more effective mode of operating for the EU institutions; a common policy for immigration and asylum; better management of the EU borders; strengthening European judicial co-operation; and the protection of fundamental human rights, inter alia the principles of non-discrimination and gender equality.
Our main objective is to minimise the perceived gap between European citizens and EU institutions in order to push for a better and more democratic Europe. The EU should be deeply rooted in the principles of attribution, subsidiarity and proportionality. As a consequence, it should be less intrusive in all those sectors that could be better dealt with at national, regional or local level.
That is why, since August, the Italian presidency has been promoting at the general affairs council a common reflection on how to reform effectively the working methods of the EU institutions within the council. We are looking at issues such as subsidiarity and the proportionality principles; the relationship between euro ins and euro outs; the role of the national Parliaments; how to ensure the effective and complete implementation of European Council decisions; and a more decisive push towards the simplification of EU rules.
On the issue of rights, a stronger role for the EU in the Mediterranean is paramount in order to prevent new tragedies there. Last July, the justice and home affairs informal council recognised that more solidarity among EU member states is needed and that the borders of each member state are to be considered as an EU border. We have also appreciated the political endorsement of the start of a new joint maritime patrolling operation from 1 November this year—operation Triton—which will be led under the aegis of a strengthened Frontex agency.
The Italian presidency is at the forefront regarding human rights and fundamental freedoms, non-discrimination and gender equality. In our view, all those principles represent the cornerstone of the European construction. With that in mind, the Italian presidency has relaunched the negotiation on the scheme for the directive on non-discrimination, and important progress has been registered on the directive that is designed to improve the gender balance in Europe’s company boardrooms. Furthermore, on 23 to 24 October, the Italian presidency will host in Rome the conference on the Beijing platform for action of the world conference on women. In November, Italy will inaugurate a week of rights to assess strategies targeting discrimination in Europe.
The third and final priority is a stronger and global role for Europe in foreign policy. Italy is convinced that only a stronger position for the EU on the global stage can help us to get out of the economic crisis. At the same time, economic growth has to be based on our shared European values, thus becoming a new model at international level.
Last July, the informal justice and home affairs council provided a follow-up to the results of the Mediterranean task force and stressed the key role of closer integration between the external and the internal dimension of migratory policies by strengthening dialogue with third countries of origin on the transit of migrants. The Italian presidency has scheduled three ministerial meetings at the end of November that will be devoted to migratory issues: the fourth Euro-African ministerial conference, with the participation of north-west African countries on migrations and development in the framework of the Rabat process; the joint conference of foreign and interior ministers; and the first ministerial conference of the Khartoum process with countries in eastern Africa. All those events will highlight the key link between migrations and development, as well as the key role of the relation between migrations, security and trafficking of human beings.
Italy also encourages the regional dimension of the EU neighbourhood policy and supports AMICI—a southern Mediterranean investment co-ordination initiative—which aims to rationalise European aid to the southern regions. The Italian presidency strongly supports the on-going negotiations on TTIP—the transatlantic trade and investment partnership—since trade and foreign investments are an integral part of our strategy for external action.
As regards the comprehensive economic and trade agreement—CETA—with Canada, the debates promoted during the Italian presidency resulted in the conclusion of the negotiations in August and the presentation of the agreement at the EU-Canada summit on 25 September. We are also finalising partnership agreements with countries in western Africa.
Italy fully supports the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on the constant and coherent commitment with Asian-Pacific partners on all global and regional challenges. In mid-October, the Euro-Asia region will be at the centre of attention not only at the Asia-Europe meeting—ASEM—summit, which will be hosted in Milan on 16 and 17 October, but on the occasion of a number of other related events such as business forums, civil society meetings and cultural events. It will be a unique opportunity to promote the growth and development of the two regions and reinforce the dialogue on political and economic co-operation as well as social and cultural exchanges.
Finally, we will host expo 2015 in Milan, from May to October 2015. The Italian presidency is paying special attention to the issue of sustainable development. The main focus during the informal agriculture councils was the issue of food security and the possible positive synergies with Expo Milano 2015, the theme of which will be “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life”.
That concludes my presentation, madam convener. Thank you for your attention.