The Draghi report concludes that the EU's economic growth in the last two decades has lagged behind that of the US, while China has quickly caught up with the EU and the US. As a result, the EU is losing out in global competition. The EU simply constitutes a smaller and smaller part of the world economy. According to the report, this is mainly due to weaker productivity growth.
Therefore, the EU should invest at least 750 to 800 billion euros annually in, among other things, green transition, digitalization and innovation.
- Radical changes are needed. They must come quickly, and they must be concrete, says European Central Bank President Mario Draghi at the presentation of the report.
For comparison, the amount according to the report corresponds to more than double the Marshall Plan after World War II. In other words, there is a need for enormous public and private investments if Europe is to regain a central position in the world economy.
With this, Mario Draghi opens a deeply sensitive discussion about financing in the EU. Here, countries like Denmark are traditionally skeptical of joint financing via loans, but there is a need to pool resources, Draghi believes.
- Yes, there is a need for joint investments. I do not want to start the sensitive discussion, which is up to the member states, says Mario Draghi.
Shall form the basis for the work in the coming years
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, received the report on Monday at a joint press conference with Mario Draghi.
- Your report will form the basis for our work in the coming months and years, says Ursula von der Leyen.
She highlights the need for investments in the green transition and the need to ensure that all Europeans benefit from economic growth as central to the work of the European Commission.
According to von der Leyen, many of the recommendations from the Draghi report will be written into the job descriptions that the candidates for the EU commissioner positions receive. In other words, Von der Leyen will give birth to her second EU Commission with task descriptions that have a starting point in the Draghi report.
- We want to make the green transition a path to growth. We want to improve the skills of workers. We want to work for lower energy prices and more research and innovation. These are things that drive competitiveness, says Ursula von der Leyen.
Need for joint financing
Like Mario Draghi, she wants to strengthen the defense industry in Europe in light of the threat from Russia. Ursula von der Leyen also makes it clear that she is ready to join hands with the EU countries on the need for joint financing:
- There is a need for joint financing for some joint EU projects. Our task is to define which ones. It could be in defense and in energy infrastructure across borders. We must look at the political will to implement the projects, says Ursula von der Leyen.
According to Mario Draghi, individual EU countries are already implementing a number of the recommendations. But this is happening in a scattered manner, and the effect is not large enough. This puts the EU in a vulnerable situation, says Draghi.
- The competitive advantage the EU had 30 years ago is gone.
- For the first time since the Cold War, we should fear for our ability to preserve ourselves. However, I am sure that together we can find the strength for reforms, says Mario Draghi.
/ritzau/
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