eunbil · H70N4CE479 · 2019-09-24 00:00:00 — As industry value chains are highly dependent on services, especially digital services, it will be necessary to remove remaining cross-border obstacles and to prevent new barriers and risks of fragmentation in this regard. For that to happen, a thorough sector-by-sector analysis would make possible tailor-made and more user-centric policy measures. On that basis, Member States should also commit to improving their performance in reducing service restrictions while ensuring high quality standards and consumer protection. 22.Effective and uniform implementation, application and enforcement are crucial for the proper functioning of the single market. Effective enforcement and implementation require a strong commitment at political level and increased transparency. A long-term action plan for better implementation, application, and enforcement of single market rules is therefore needed as called for in 2019 ’s conclusions. Moreover, the Competitiveness Council conclusions of 27 2019 invites the Commission to present a state of play regarding the implementation, application and enforcement of existing legislation as set out in the abovementioned Council Conclusions. 23.The EU should pursue a forward-looking single market policy in the rapidly progressing digital era and set the objective of Europe becoming a global leader in the digital economy. Future policies should therefore create a level playing field for businesses, boost their capacity to compete and be productive and help provide for faster dissemination and better absorption of digital technologies and solutions. 24.Strengthening the Single Market and creating conditions for sustainable growth require sound and enabling regulatory environment that promotes innovation, competitiveness, employment as well as well-being of citizens, and also takes into account the needs of SMEs. The robust use of all better regulation principles and tools, especially those advancing sustainability and innovation, is prerequisite for having a more future-proof, market-driven and evidence-based regulatory environment for sustainable growth. It is important to continue systematic and ambitious efforts towards better regulation and better functioning of regulatory environment based on this starting point and the commitments made. 25.Policy measures needed: •Deepening the analyses of the existing barriers to the Single Market, as requested by the 2019 , and coordinating appropriate actions with a view to coming up with adequate regulatory or non-regulatory solutions. •Conducting thorough sector-by-sector analyses, in particular in relation to services, to make possible tailor-made and more user-centric policy measures and identification of opportunities and barriers experienced by entrepreneurs. •Providing for faster dissemination and better absorption of digital and other technologies and solutions for businesses, in particular SMEs •Adopting a long-term action plan on implementation, application and enforcement of single market rules, as requested by the in 2019, and strengthening national and EU enforcement and implementation capabilities both by upon existing tools and by considering possible structural or administrative solutions. The above action plan should be combined with regular reports on the current state of the functioning of the single market. •Enhancing cooperation among national authorities to ensure uniform application and enforcement of current EU rules. The Commission can play an important role by providing modern tools for information exchange between national authorities and setting up networks. •Ensuring efficient use of the standardisation system in order to support innovation and global competitiveness of European industries and businesses •Strengthening the EU regulatory competitiveness, in accordance with the principles of better regulation, by pursuing clearer and simpler EU rules that do not put unnecessary regulatory burden on European business and citizens. Making the EU a global leader in the digital economy and a globally attractive scalable market for digitalisation and for digital services 26.In a time of strong global competition, Europe needs to ensure a favourable environment for European businesses to compete with global players. It is therefore important to embrace the accelerating digital transformation of our economy and society, which both offers new opportunities and poses new challenges. The EU should adopt policies that promote a rapid deployment of digital technologies and solutions in society and the economy, and especially among SMEs. 27.Digitalisation and AI, data and the platform economy are key drivers for accelerating European productivity, growth, prosperity and employment in the global context. Therefore, Europe needs a coherent digital policy, which will make possible cross-border innovation, competitiveness and uptake of key technologies so that European businesses can grow and compete worldwide. 28.The transition towards climate neutrality will affect all industries and requires significant reorganisation. It is crucial to ensure that this transition and the reorganisation needed is carried out in a just . There is a rapidly growing global market potential for circular and climate-friendly solutions based on digital technologies, and particularly for better utilisation of data. Digital and circular solutions can reduce transaction costs and improve the energy and material efficiency of industrial processes and value chains. Future EU policy approaches should promote the development and uptake of enabling key technologies and services as well as reorganisation of processes and value chains by European businesses in order to enable the EU to extend and exploit its competitive edge in green solutions. 29.European companies should take on key roles in ecosystems emerging around the new platforms, and strive to be attractive partners for global companies. To strengthen ecosystems for European industrial and space data, Commission should continue putting in place mechanisms to encourage and incentivise sharing, joint use and pooling of data. 30.It will also be necessary to create incentives for companies and entrepreneurs to share data. One of the key elements in the future will be people’s trust in digital platforms and their data security. Improved cybersecurity is a crucial element in businesses’ and citizens’ trust in digital solutions. 31.Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are pivotal tools for improving the EU’s competitiveness as part of the global data economy. The internet of things, AI, and other emerging technologies create new possibilities for the growth of industry. 32.Policy measures needed: •Developing a comprehensive roadmap for the regulatory landscape on data as well as fair and innovative use and reuse of data (including privacy rules, access, interoperability, connectivity, sharing and ownership as well as ethics and integrity). •Setting up European Union guidelines for fair and legal exchange and use of data, providing users with the tools to control their data and allowing them to access and transfer their data securely to various service providers. •Striving for the EU and European businesses to become significant developers and adopters of AI by ensuring that European fundamental and applied research into AI is at a competitive level vis-à-vis other leading regions. •Emphasizing the need for European approach on the human and ethical implications of AI. Making the EU a forerunner and role model in AI ethics. Upholding ethics and trust as a competitive edge by creating incentives and mechanisms for European businesses, research and innovation to ensure human control and transparency (e.g. traceability, explainability, interpretability) of the decisions and solutions provided by AI. In addition, guidance could be developed to support practical sector-specific implementation. •To strengthen ecosystems for European industrial and space data, Commission should continue putting in place mechanisms to encourage and to incentivise sharing, joint use and pooling of data. •Assessing whether the EU’s competition framework is fit for purpose to address anti- competitive practices in the platform and data-driven economy and ensuring that the enforcement of the rules in individual cases is based on a correct understanding of the functioning of the market or markets concerned. •Encouraging European citizens to trust the digitalising society by offering solutions in areas such as transparency of algorithms and human-centred data management, supported by an efficient implementation of the Protection Regulation. Promoting innovation-led transitions with an ambitious policy mix emphasising investments in knowledge, uptake of research results and deployment of innovations recognising R&I as a key enabler and driver for productivity, policies and solutions for sustainable growth 33.Research and innovation policy contributes horizontally and systemically to the sustainable growth agenda. This new, knowledgeand innovation-led sustainable growth model should promote economic openness and innovation-friendly markets, with an ambitious policy mix including much higher investment levels in research and innovation and the renewal of our industry, as well as increased use of innovative public procurement. These markets are key for encouraging uptake of research results and rapid deployment of disruptive innovations by European industry and businesses in a cost-efficient way, for example in digital, climate neutral and resource-efficient technologies. Horizon Europe is the central EU programme for delivering on these ambitions. 34.The EU should promote coordinated efforts in research and innovation and set clear missionoriented directionality for investments in order to facilitate and curate solutions for the transition towards climate neutrality, and to reap the benefits of digitalisation. In this context, the promotion of strategic value chains to develop and secure the position and unique value proposition of EU industry globally, in emerging and strategically important sectors, is a key process at the interface of research, innovation and industrial policies. 35.Equally, ensuring technology neutrality and openness to emerging and innovative approaches and business models by new entrants strengthens both the resilience and the agility of economy. Research provides a solid knowledge base for future innovation, and public-private R&I collaboration in its various forms accelerates the renewal of the industry. Open science policies, in turn, provide potential for future European innovations emerge from our investments in the knowledge base and increase creativeness and responsiveness to societal challenges in the field of research and innovation. 36.By developing and deploying cutting-edge technologies, European strategic infrastructure and capacity and significant data sets for public and private use, space policy has become a key enabler for future sustainable growth and the basis for monitoring the climate and use of resources. The potential of space-enabled solutions in different sectors and in the New Space Economy is global by default. 37.Closely coordinating with industrial, digital and skills policies, we need to ensure that European fundamental and applied research into AI is at a competitive level vis-à-vis other leading countries. The link between AI and other emerging technologies such as blockchain, computing and brain-machine interfaces, as well as contributions already made at EU level, should be recognised and utilised to swiftly advance the common approach still further. This includes improving Europe’s AI capabilities and promoting uptake of digital technologies, by European industries and service businesses among others, while addressing ethical, safety and security concerns. 38.To harness the potential of new technologies, both societies and companies should invest in skilling, upskilling and reskilling workers and researchers at all stages, facilitating workforce mobility and generating innovations that complement human labour. 39.Access to finance is a crucial factor for the scaling up of SMEs and the issue should be properly addressed at EU level. The EU should continue to develop European capital markets and public funding mechanisms in an integrated way to smartly combine EU funds with private funding sources so as to help bring about the renewal and efficient scaling-up of European companies possessing strong growth potential. To that end, capital market should be further strengthened to provide suitable solutions for different financing needs. In this context, and complementing national level initiatives, it necessary to swiftly ramp up () to identify and scale up breakthrough and disruptive innovation in particular, especially focusing on SMEs. 40.Policy measures needed: •Increasing the investment in R&I to achieve the of GDP target, in such a way that it triggers private investments and engages all stakeholders. •Embedding research and innovation policy as an integral, horizontal part of European sustainable growth policy backed up by a strengthened Horizon Europe programme. This requires cross-sectoral commitment to common goals. •Integrating an innovation-led and transformative change perspective into public policies (e.g. healthcare and social services, climate change, energy, transport) in order to improve the ability to tackle challenges that are often horizontal in nature. •Promoting broader systems change including design of new kinds of policies and tools and integrating them into a new policy-mix. New tools include e.g. innovation-friendly legislation and development of instruments, which promote experimentation including testbeds and pilot infrastructure sandboxes. •Developing European capital markets and public funding mechanisms in and integrated way to smartly combine EU funds with private funding sources to help bring about the renewal and efficient scaling-up of European companies with strong growth potential. •Adding a clear mission-oriented directionality to EU-funding facilitates industrial renewal and curate solutions for the transition towards climate neutrality. Enhancing the competitiveness and productivity of Europe by investing in education, continuous learning, reskilling, upskilling and new skills needed in a digital world, in the industrial transformation and in transition to a climate neutral economy 41.To address the challenges the EU is facing in terms of changes in working life, digitalisation and climate change, new skills and a more strategic and coordinated European approach to continuous learning are needed. Continuous learning will enhance growth and competitiveness by, for instance, supporting the EU's ability to create innovations. It also enables citizens to become involved in digital and technological developments and thus increases inclusion, equality, resilience and well-being for all, throughout life. Both the basic skills and specialised expertise should be taken into account. This is also linked to the concept of an “economy of well-being” which is based on a recognition of citizens’ well-being as a driver of economic growth and vice versa. 42.Future needs for new types of skills and competences call for systematic promotion of skills development at both European and level. New approaches to address cooperation between education and research systems and business sector are also important. Moreover, more flexible, work-related approaches to reskilling and upskilling workforce are needed to meet the requirements of the digital era and the ongoing industrial transformation. This concerns all sectors and all levels. The EU should continue to be in supporting projects such as Education Area (EEA) where the aim is to remove barriers from studying in another EU as well as Member States’ national efforts in enhancing future-oriented continuous learning and education systems. 43.Thanks to digital solutions, people work more across borders. This increases labour mobility and productivity by expanding the skills base. At the same time, this calls for fair and balanced mobility and good practices in helping foreign workers and their families to integrate in the various Member States. 44.Policy measures needed: •Developing a comprehensive, strategic and empowering European approach (new European skills agenda) to investing in skills, for all citizens and all stages of life, by aiming for a European strategy on continuous learning •Ensuring the implementation of this strategy in such a way that it incorporates European social values and is for the benefit of citizens and businesses. This agenda should also balance the digital and industrial transformation and the implications of a just transition to climate neutral economy with their impact on the labour market. •Supporting Member States in their efforts in continuous learning and reskilling/upskilling and enhancing the collaboration between education and training, research and the business sector. •Exploring ways of introducing European-level initiatives that facilitate investments in continuous learning, including co-operation between the public and private sectors Strengthening the external dimension of the EU’s competitiveness and making better use of the opportunities of the single market in order to improve the global competitiveness of European industries 45.The EU should continue to pursue its own interest and promote its values such as openness in world trade and a level global playing field, with a view to contributing to success for European citizens and to helping businesses and industry make full use of global value chains. The strengthening of open trade policies is especially important in the current circumstances in which the international trading system and the benefits of open world trade are increasingly under siege. The EU should continue to uphold openness and a multilateral rules-based trading system. In parallel, the EU needs to engage actively in plurilateral and bilateral negotiation with third countries to secure market access for goods, services and investments and gain access to public procurement markets. 46.State subsidies and other trade-restricting measures can distort markets and harm European businesses by creating unfair advantages for non-EU firms. Such measures should be addressed by using available trade policy tools in international negotiations, dispute settlement proceedings and, where appropriate, with instruments such as countervailing measures. The reform of the WTO should also be pursued in order to increase transparency, address trade barriers and update the multilateral legal basis to correspond to the current challenges in international trade. This would mean reviewing the existing framework of WTO agreements and adding new legal regimes for areas such as digital trade and transition to climate neutral economy. 47.Policy measures needed: •Supporting an ambitious approach in multilateral fora and pursuing reform of the WTO in order to increase transparency, address trade barriers, ensure the functioning of the and update the multilateral rule book so that it corresponds to the current challenges in international trade such as digital trade, the free flow of data and the transition to a climate neutral economy. •Addressing unfair trading practices systematically and being proactive in pursuing the EU’s own interests and values, as well as promoting digital trade through/in trade agreements and ensuring the free flow of data. •Ensuring that the EU’s competition framework is fit for new technological developments. However, any updates must be based on clear facts and evidence while ensuring effective competition on the market. Anti-competitive conduct by economic operators with (discriminatory) state aid granted by third countries should be addressed by effective international subsidy rules and appropriate use of the recently modernised trade defence instruments. •Continuing to use trade and investment negotiations to increase market access as well as to promote EU’s standards, regulatory requirements and values abroad. Sustainability in all its aspects (economic, social and environmental) should be the guiding principle.