Description
On 29 January, the European Commission presented the Compass for Competitiveness, one of the most important initiatives since the beginning of its mandate. This strategic plan offers a clear vision of the future of the EU, setting out the objectives and priorities that will guide the work of the Commission in the period 2024-2029.
Compass goals for competitiveness
Over the past 20 years, the EU's productivity has lagged behind that of other major global economies. For this reason, it is crucial to take concrete measures to boost the continent's competitiveness. A commitment reiterated by President von der Leyen who, after forming the new Commission, announced this initiative to revive economic growth and prosperity in the EU. The Competitiveness Compass is based on the recommendations made by Mario Draghi in his report on the future of European competitiveness, presented in September. In his report, Draghi identified three key transformative needs: closing the innovation gap, developing a common roadmap for decarbonisation and competitiveness, reducing excessive dependencies and strengthening security. The compass also defines the approach to be followed for each of these priorities, accompanied by a set of guiding measures.
Strengthening the protection of consumer rights
The initiative will also have a significant impact on the protection of European consumer rights, one of the Commission's key priorities. Thanks to the Single Market, European consumers enjoy a wide choice of products and services, together with a high level of protection. However, as stated in the Commission Communication presenting and describing the Competitiveness Compass, the Single Market is not yet fully realised. Despite efforts to break down barriers to the free movement of goods, services, capital and people, some difficulties persist, preventing full integration. Removing these barriers will lead to a more competitive, integrated and beneficial Single Market for both businesses and consumers. Furthermore, the EU has a responsibility to ensure the conditions necessary for advanced technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), to flourish, while protecting the fundamental rights of its citizens. The EU has already played a leading role in creating a stable and secure regulatory framework, through measures such as the Data Act, the Cyber Resilience Act and the AI Act. Access to high-quality, large-scale data is crucial for the development of AI. Therefore, the Commission plans to propose a Data Union Strategy to facilitate the secure sharing of public and private data. Therefore, the Commission will continue to work to ensure that technological growth goes hand in hand with security protection.
In parallel to these initiatives, the Commission has included in its compass the Clean Industrial Deal, which aims to make the EU a more attractive destination for manufacturing, including energy-intensive industries, and to promote clean technologies, as well as new circular business models, with the goal of achieving decarbonisation by 2050. To this end, the Commission will also present an investment plan for sustainable transport. Adopting policies that favour the use of clean technologies and the transition to a circular economy will not only contribute to sustainability, but also enrich the choices available to consumers. Indeed, such measures will ensure more sustainable and environmentally friendly products by increasing the transparency of product information and improving consumer awareness and quality of choice.
The new Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, Rule of Law and Consumer Protection, Michael McGrath, will also work on market enlargement, with the aim of making the digital market more transparent and fairer. In addition, the Commissioner is committed to introducing a Digital Fairness Act to counter unethical business practices related to dark patterns, influencer marketing on social media, addictive digital product design and online profiling. In parallel, McGrath intends to address issues related to e-commerce platforms, with the aim of protecting consumers and ensuring a level playing field. Another crucial point concerns the strengthening of product safety policies to ensure that the EU continues to be a global model in terms of consumer protection and product safety.
With these objectives, the EU is committed to protecting consumer rights in an increasingly digitised and sustainable future. The joint action of the European institutions will be crucial to build a fairer, safer and more competitive EU for all.
Source and image: European Consumer Centre Italy - ECC-Net Italy