The strengthening of the Single European Market vs. the crisis

Abstract

The economic crisis that erupted in 2008 has significantly influenced the European Union (EU) economy and questions about the future of the European integration process have arisen. The crisis' effects forced the European Union institutions and its Member States to take significant decisions and to draft recovery plans. Apart from initiatives aimed at economic policy coordination and financial market supervision, the EU proposed and introduced important initiatives for the strengthening of the internal market's competitiveness. In November 2008 the European Commission in its communication on the EU recovery plan proposed ways for supporting the real economy and competitiveness, for boosting demand and for restoring confidence in the European economy. Then, over the years 2008-2011, a broad range of legislative and non-legislative decisions were taken by the European Commission and the European Parliament in order to minimize the crisis' consequences for the internal market, which included the Single Market Act and the new European strategy Europe 2020. Moreover, part of the EU budget was taken out for investments in energy security, the development of broad-band internet in the rural areas or enterprise help within the framework of the EU Cohesion Policy, while the European Investment Bank took out15 billion euros for credits and loans to SMEs. Taking into account the variety and the scope of these actions this article will focus on the initiatives aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the EU internal market. The overall objective is to answer the three main questions: 1. What are the priorities of the internal market and how can market competitiveness be improved in crisis circumstances? 2. What are the main activities of the EU institutions (the European Commission and the European Parliament) to strengthen the functioning of the internal market and EU competitiveness during and after the crisis? 3. What are the funding sources of actions relating to the internal market after the crisis? (original abstract)