Priorities for the single market beyond 2019 - BusinessEurope strategy paper

With this strategy paper, BUSINESSEUROPE sets out its general priorities for the future of the Single Market policy after the 2019 European elections. It highlights the importance of maintaining trust in and responsibility for the Single Market through reinforced focus on its end users – businesses and citizens – so that political and social support for market integration is regained. It is crucial that there is understanding why the Single Market is the strongest tool to reap benefits of globalisation and deal with the primary challenges people of Europe face, such as climate change, migration, global trade and technological rivalry tensions, and Brexit along with a generally unstable global geo-political landscape. No EU Member State is capable of addressing it all alone. Freedoms of movement of capital, goods, services, people and data in the Single Market can give huge economic power to the EU, its members individually and as a whole, in this regard. That economic power generated from more effective distribution of resources and fair competition would enable faster economic and social convergence that is so needed in the EU. A cross-cutting “reflex” to safeguard and deepen the Single Market in different policy areas on a daily basis must be established as top political priority, so that the EU remains the best place for investment and achieves an effective and fair Single Market which brings tangible benefits to all.

BUSINESSEUROPE intends to react to the Commission’s report on the state of play of the Single Market to the December European Council of 2018 and the debate by Heads of State and Government by way of updating or supplementing this strategy paper.

Key messages

• Further opening and integration of the markets of goods and services, including logistics and network services, is needed in order to unleash the full economic potential of the EU and establish a solid basis for global competition in the long run.
• Digitalisation is crucial for European competitiveness, so the framework conducive to the roll-out of digital technologies and fair rules on access to data, free flow of data, and liability should be achieved through a holistic policy approach.
• Infrastructure investment conducive regulatory and financial framework must be ensured so that physical and digital infrastructures are significantly improved and interoperable.
• Single Market legislation should consistently reflect the market integration ambition through reduction of barriers and be future-proof: it should allow for innovation, flexibility for business to respond to fast-changing environment, enable new business models and be technology-neutral.
• Better regulation principles and their practical implementation should remain a key priority so that the Single Market is the best place to do business and work.
• The Single Market governance infrastructure should be vastly reinforced at EU and national level in order to strengthen timely, transparent and efficient implementation and enforcement of the Single Market rules.