State of the European Union 2015 – Presidency Edition Part I
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State of the European Union 2015 – Presidency Edition Part I – Prologue INTRODUCTION The European Union is being severely put to the test. It is facing a huge influx of people who have fled war and oppression. On the eastern borders, geopolitics appears to be making a comeback, and within the EU itself, the threat of fragmentation looms. Terrorists are attacking our way of life, in an attempt to spread fear and sow divisions in our societies. There are no quick and easy ways to resolve these issues. As the next holder of the EU Council Presidency, it is incumbent on the Netherlands to help the EU find common solutions in these turbulent times. Unity and resolve are needed at all levels. The effective combination of European and national measures will form an important basis for those solutions. On the eve of the first Dutch EU Presidency in 12 years, the government would like to look ahead with you at the challenges facing the European Union. What problems and dilemmas will we encounter, what is the context in which we will be operating, and what will be the position, role and focus of the Netherlands? This is therefore a special edition of the State of the Union, specifically highlighting the coming six months. After all, as holder of the Presidency, our relationship with the institutions and the other member states will be different from usual. The EU will look specifically to the Netherlands as an honest arbiter with a keen eye for Europe’s collective interests. The government has been working with you towards this role for some time now, and therefore the present document does not stand in isolation. It should be viewed in conjunction with and in addition to the State of the European Union which was sent to the House on 23 February 2015, as well as the successive letters to the House on the preparations for the EU Presidency, in particular that of 28 January 2015. The EU-related interests the government has been focusing on since it took office will not change significantly in the coming period, but the context will be different. The government will continue pursuing its existing ambitions in the run-up to and during the EU Presidency, in a manner in keeping with the rotating Presidency role. This State of the European Union comprises two parts. The first part discusses the context in which the Netherlands will hold the EU Presidency and analyses the key challenges facing the Union. It reflects on the basic principles of the Dutch Presidency, which have been discussed in previous letters to the House: focusing on the essentials, creating innovative growth and jobs, and making connections. It also highlights the demands the Presidency will place on the Netherlands. The second part gives an overview of the key issues at play in the various Council configurations over the coming period. The government will discuss in more detail the specific focus and activities of the Dutch EU Presidency. The customary government assessment of the Commission Work Programme for the coming year, which the Commission presented on 27 October, is also included in the second part. FIRST KEY STEPS HAVE BEEN TAKEN TOWARDS UNITY AND EFFECTIVENESS Today’s challenges require effective decision-making and broadly supported solutions. In many cases they require a range of interconnected measures, in both the short and the long term. This is by no means an easy task, but when the EU member states join forces and show the collective political will to rise above individual interests, the Union can be highly effective. That effectiveness is not a thing of the distant past. In recent years, too, the member states and the institutions have proven capable – under the pressure of various crises and in a wide range of policy areas – of setting the necessary changes in motion from within. Together we have taken on formidable challenges and charted a course that focuses more on the essentials and the foundations of the Union. An initial example is the Strategic Agenda, which the European Council adopted in June 2014. The purpose of the Agenda was for the Council to flesh out and give clear direction to the principle of a Union that focuses on the essentials: taking action at national level where possible, and at European level where necessary. The document contains the member states’ key common priorities for the coming years – nothing more and nothing less. The Commission’s Political Guidelines, which are closely related to the Strategic Agenda, set out closer cooperation between the institutions and embed 1 the EU’s priorities and principles firmly in the heart of European governance. The Commission has subsequently set to work with great drive, using these new and renewed principles as its guide. By extension, the EU member states and institutions have shown that they want to halt the existing tendency towards overly rigid legislation. The Commission is taking steps towards better EU regulation in various areas. There is a sharper focus on the areas where the EU genuinely adds value, and more attention is being paid to reducing the regulatory burden and achieving policy goals more efficiently. This is essential in order to ensure public support, as well as implementation of and compliance with European agreements. Applied correctly, this approach will also help ensure law-making processes run smoothly and soundly, while at national level giving member states sufficient policy freedom and economic room to manoeuvre. Another example of European unity and effectiveness lies in the economic and financial realm. The EU has weathered a deep crisis and emerged stronger. Flaws in the EU’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) have been addressed or are in the process of being remedied. Important steps have also been taken to organise the eurozone and the Union at large in such a way that the agreements made are observed, while at the same time innovative growth is stimulated. The introduction of the Banking Union, for example, helps further strengthen the EMU and the single market, by promoting a more level playing field for European banks and reducing cross-border systemic risks and the threat of contagion. In addition, this summer a substantial programme of reforms was agreed with Greece, following intensive European cooperation. This prevented a possible Greek exit from the euro and preserved unity and stability in the eurozone. The priority for the Netherlands is for Greece to comply with the agreements it has signed up to. To that end, the new aid package is supported by strict measures aimed at putting Greece’s public finances in order, fostering stability in the financial sector and making structural economic reforms. The government has confidence in the way ahead, but will of course closely monitor compliance with and implementation of the agreements made with Greece. Another important development in the realm of finance and the economy is the establishment of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), created to stimulate growth. Funds have already been allocated to a first set of projects. These are just a few examples of the EU’s new focal points. They signal the beginning of a shift in EU governance, which the Netherlands has significantly boosted with its national subsidiarity exercise, the subsequent seminar it held in the winter of 2014 and its continued call to focus on the essentials, achieve a better balance between the institutions, and work to connect the EU’s members and institutions with each other and the European people. During the Dutch Presidency, the government wants to help the EU continue along this path. The institutional and other developments outlined above not only show that the EU is able to bring about change from within, but they also offer the Union ways of dealing more effectively with other, equally complex challenges. NEED FOR EUROPEAN COOPERATION, SOLIDARITY AND RESPONSIBILITY Several of the challenges facing the EU demand common solutions. The arc of instability around the European Union is severely affecting the world around us, and the effects are increasingly being felt within the Union’s borders too. Member states are struggling to cope with the large numbers of people seeking safety or better economic circumstances. The migration crisis also requires us to redefine our cooperation with key partners, including Turkey and African transit countries and countries of origin. Terrorist threats and attacks both in the EU, like those in Paris and Brussels, and in neighbouring countries, such as the attack in Ankara, put pressure on our societies. To the east, Russia is challenging the security system and feelings are running high. In response, there have been calls to batten down the hatches, to literally close the borders or even pursue an ‘illiberal democracy’. However, it is more important than ever at times like these to keep a calm head, acknowledge legitimate concerns and work with all the member states to plot a common course so as to tackle problems effectively and allow Europe to function better. External and internal security are inextricably linked, as the recent attacks in Paris made painfully clear. The same goes for the way we guarantee that security. The EU was founded on the fundamental values of freedom, democracy, the rule of law, equality and solidarity. Certainly from that point of view, it is unacceptable that people fleeing war or oppression are forced to put their lives – and their 2 children’s lives – in the hands of people smugglers. The influx of refugees crossing the external borders and travelling on into the Union is putting the EU’s free-movement-of-persons principle under pressure and demands a reappraisal of the Dublin system.