Priorities for the next EU legislature open 10th edition of ‘How Can We Govern Europe?’

Brussels – EU priorities open the 10th edition of the the first trip event, organized today (Dec. 6) by Withub with the editorial direction of Eunews and Gea – Green Economy Agency in Brussels at the residence of the Italian ambassador to Belgium. With only a few months to go before the elections in June 2024, the panel Economic, Political and International Priorities and the Union’s International Role in the New Legislature just around the corner lined up what still needs to be finalized before the return to the vote and what needs to be worked on in the next legislature. From industrial policy to possible new majorities in Parliament, not forgetting treaty reform, the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, and state aid.

How We Govern Europe?The starting point is the state of the art on the relationship between Brussels and the 27 capitals, starting especially with industrial policy. “Europe must be aware that it must have an industry that is competitive in the world, if we start from this assumption we must create the conditions for the green and digital transition to be a success,” is the exhortation of Confindustria’s Director of European Affairs, Matteo Borsani. Not only “serious impact analyses” on the level of EU legislation, but above all “maintain a certain level playing field, the Internal Market lives on the same conditions as allies and competitors.” And here we enter the thorny issue of state aid. “We cannot rely only on state aid to maintain competitiveness,” explained Borsani, who was echoed by Forza Italia MEP Massimiliano Salini: “The problem is when resources are provided and the way in which those same resources are to be spent is constrained,aid must not become the way in which you limit the possibility of domestic decision-making.” And on the issue of competitiveness, his colleague from Fratelli d’Italia Raffaele Stancanelli also made it clear that care must be taken during the next legislature to “not unhinge European industrial policy to favor countries like China.”

It is from here, however, that one can start for a reflection regarding the EU’s priorities on the front of the Union’s support for the Twenty-Seven, and vice versa. In his speech at ‘How Can We Govern Europe?’, the president emeritus of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC),Luca Jahier, wanted to refer to the experience of recent years: “With the Next Generation Eu we have had the proof that proceeding by punishments and sanctions produces fewer results than proceeding by rewards and incentives” and now that “we are at the halfway point” it is shown how “even the most reluctant countries have substantially implemented structural reforms.” In the face of an “increasing demand on the EU to support initiatives on energy transition, in ether policy or for enlargement”-as Center for European Policy Studies (Ceps) research director Cinzia Alcidi forcefully pointed out-Jahier herself noted that “the mechanism of linking strategic investments to reforms has worked.”

visiting the president of the Eurochamber, Roberta Metsola, also Carlo Corazza, director of the European Parliament Office in Italy. Next June 9 “will be a political vote, because there will be real choices,” predicted Corazza as he looked ahead to the approaching European election round. Starting with the “increasingly sharp contrast between liberal democracies and authoritarian regimes.” And then the issue of enlargement, the double transition, the revision of the treaties. But the call is to win the “most important” challenge: get out the vote

, it’s not certain, but we are positive and there is moderate optimism,” Democratic Party delegation leader and co-rapporteur for the European Parliament on the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, Brando Benifei, explained in a video conference shortly before the start of inter-institutional negotiations. “The Fundamental Issues Regulation has already been agreed, it has a risk-based approach as a principle for classifying uses of AI,” but there are still “significant disagreements with the Council on some issues.” The reference is to the “safety verification requirements of the most powerful models,” such as ChatGpt, whereby “companies need to be sure that they do not have to have responsibility for issues of which they cannot now be fully aware.” Added to this is the issue of “security over control and surveillance uses,” such as biometric recognition cameras, predictive policing, emotional recognition, and exceptions for police use. “We have to find common ground with Council,” Benifei explained, specifying that he “has to balance the need to put some openings to the exception requests that the Council puts to us, with independent oversight so that the state does not control itself over compliance.”

Another extremely important EU priority is that of treaty reform. “Today only one member country has the upper hand, i.e., it has the ability to bring about a stalemate on decisions of enormous importance at this historic moment,” recalled 5 Star Movement MEP Laura Ferrara, referring to tenth edition of ‘How Can We Govern Europe?’ and the “citizens’ demands for a more cohesive Union,” in which treaty reform plays a decisive role: “Citizens have asked us to change unanimous voting to qualified majority voting in foreign policy.”

‘How Can We Govern Europe’The conclusion of the first panel of the tenth edition of ‘How Can We Govern Europe?’ on EU priorities in the next legislature is a reminder of the starting point: the June 6-9, 2024 elections. “There is often a contradiction between the polls and the expression of vote at the national level,” warned Ceps (Center for European Policy Studies) research director Cinzia Alcidi, who was immediately hooked by the members in the Eurochamber of the two parties that make up the majority in Italy. “The really interesting question is what majority will be formed next time when alternative fuels, Ets, green houses, nature restoration law will be discussed in plenary,” Salini pressed, “What will come out will be a different vote than today even if it doesn’t change the majority, policies will come out of those votes, although I think the groups will be about the same.” Stancanelli winked at the European People’s Party and other center-right forces: “At the beginning of the legislature the center-right parties were losing all the battles 100 to 500, today they are creating majorities on the concrete problems, which will be strengthened by the vote” six months from now.