European Union News - Internal Market

According to the financial stability review published by the ECB on 19 December, the sovereign risk crisis and its interplay with the banking sector worsened in an environment of weakening macroeconomic growth prospects during the second half of 2011. Among the risks identified, contagion effects in larger euro area sovereigns gathered strength amid rising headwinds from the interplay between the vulnerability of public finances and the financial sector.

The 1 January 2012 will mark 10 years of the introduction of euro notes and coins in the European Union. Among the benefits reached so far thanks to the euro and Economic and Monetary Union, 332 million people no longer have to pay extra costs to exchange currencies and there is more transparency in cross-border transactions, enabling consumers to compare prices between one eurozone country and another.

At the meeting the European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs held on 20 December, MEPs called for higher transparency in the process of sovereign debt rating. They also advocated for the establishment of measures to reduce the dependence on the three major agencies and recommended to assess potential conflicts of interest between the agencies and the companies they evaluate.

The European Commission has adopted a series of guidelines aimed to ensure that different premiums for men and women are not included in insurance policies. These guidelines are a response to the call from different stakeholders for practical guidance on the implications of a recent ruling from the European Court of Justice who declared these clauses contrary to EU law.

The Environment Committee at the European Parliament voted in favour to take out of the next phase of trading the Emissions Trading System (ETS) credits in order to help lift the sinking carbon price. In addition, MEPs also voted on measures aiming to get the EU on track to meet its 20% energy efficiency target by 2020.

The European Commission adopted a revised package of EU state aid rules for the assessment of public compensation for services of general economic interest (SGEI). With this new package, the Commission intends to clarify key state aid principles and introduces a diversified and proportionate approach with simpler rules for SGEIs. The responsible for the Committee of the Regions considers that on the overall approach to public services, much work remains to be done.

The European Commission proposes to modernise the European public procurement Directives in order to support growth and employment. In addition, as a part of an overall programme to modernise public tendering in the EU, the Commission presented a Directive on concessions.

The European Commission adopted a Quality Framework for Services of General Interest in the EU that, according to the European institution, will provide an essential safety net for citizens in areas such as health care, care for the elderly, child care, assistance to disabled persons and social housing. In addition, the framework intends to help Member States to ensure that the regulatory environment at EU level continues to reinforce the social dimension of the single market.

The package of proposals on the EU patent has got the approval of the Legal Affairs Committee at the European Parliament. According to MEPs, the new EU patent would be substantially cheaper and thus more competitive than current ones. If Parliament as a whole and the Council confirm the deal, a new EU patent will be created.

MEPs held a debate with the ECB's President, Mario Dragui, who defended again the ECB's traditional role, as laid down in the EU treaty. He also took the opportunity to set out his vision for better risk analysis and also the steps needed to emerge from the crisis.

The European Commission proposes to simplify the rules for the mobility of professionals within the EU by offering a European Professional Card to all interested professions. The proposed text also clarifies the framework for consumers, by inviting Member States to review the scope of their regulated professions and by addressing public concerns about language skills.