Debate: Strengthening the single market: the future of free movement of services
Date: MONDAY, 18 JANUARY 2021
Speaker: Dita Charanzová
Country: France
Language: EN

This report is extremely relevant right now. The European economy is in a terrible crisis due to the coronavirus, which affects all countries. Last year, the European economy contracted by 7.4%, and the unemployment is rising in all Member States. We need to boost the economy and create jobs. One way to do this is to realise the huge potential in the single market for services. The European Parliament Research Service estimated that the potential gain of completing the single market for services could be around EUR 297 billion, or close to 2% of European EU GDP. The aim of the report is to realise this untapped potential – a potential that doesn’t require new laws or new recovery funds to be established. The three main proposals of the report are: firstly, we must make sure that unjustified barriers in Member States are removed and that Member States enforce the existing rules. Secondly, we must provide legal clarity to businesses and consumers by supplying the necessary information. Thirdly, we must provide transparent evaluation of Member States’ performance. For example, the report suggests using scoreboards to rate Member States’ implementation of the existing rules of the single market. Mr Løkkegaard has asked me to thank all the Groups and the shadow rapporteurs who participated in reaching a compromise for this report. Thank you, all of you, for your hard work and your valuable inputs to this proposal. This area has often been highly debated among the political groups; therefore it’s a victory to reach a consensus. The broad support for this report shows that Parliament now has a majority behind several proposals to strengthen the single market on services. This is an important step in the realisation of the potential. We are facing an urgent need to create jobs and growth in Europe, and strengthening the single market for services is one of the ways to do it. With a broad majority in Parliament, it will be up to Member States and the Commission to follow the proposals in the report and to make use of the opportunity that lies at our feet. We hope that all of you will support the report. Now let me add on my behalf, Madam President. I would like to stress that the service sector accounts for around 70% of the European GDP and a similar proportion of its employment. A better-functioning single market for services is therefore a crucial necessity for a more competitive and innovative European economy. The economic fall-out from the coronavirus pandemic has only increased the urgency of unleashing the full potential of the service sector. We need greater clarity and transparency for businesses and consumers alike. We must remove unjustified barriers that deprive our citizens of jobs, our consumers of choices and our entrepreneurs of competitiveness. For too long, Member States have hidden behind over-regulation of professions and administrative barriers to prevent one of the four freedoms. I was extremely disappointed with the decision to withdraw the Services Notification Directive after the Member States and the Council blocked it. Commissioner, I call on you to engage to find new solutions, new proposals, on how to ensure all four freedoms are fully implemented. You must have the courage to act. Now it’s time to complete the single market for services: now or never.