Dear colleagues,
Spring is among us in its full glory, and as the weather gets warmer and the days get longer, Europe is taking steps to move forward. The conclusion of the Conference on the Future of Europe and the RePowerEU plan presented last week by the Commission are examples of it. The road ahead will surely remain bumpy for Europe’s industry, but as our latest Economics and Statistics report shows, our companies are also highly resilient. Despite the many challenges we continue to face – rising energy prices, scarcity of raw materials and supply chain disruptions, to name a few – our industries are ready to build the future.
"Creating the industry of tomorrow" is also one of the mottos of Hannover Messe, and I will be joining the fair with our President Rada Rodriguez and MEP Maria Carvalho to discuss the many facets of what the industry of tomorrow will look like. The switch to a data-driven economy will be a central feature of this. And the extensive new obligations to be imposed on data holders under the EU’s draft Data Act will create substantial costs that can be difficult to bear for mid-sized companies and SMEs, the bulk of Europe’s technology industries. We have issued a set of recommendations to support the ongoing legislative process of adoption of this Regulation.
Similarly, the green transition is an opportunity to put Europe’s future industry on a new path of growth. This is core to the proposed Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation presented by the European Commission last March. As so often, though, the devil is in the detail, and the win-win for the environment and the economy will depend on how the Regulation will be implemented. Our recommendations are clear, and this will be the focus of our Policy Exchange on 1 June with EU policymakers, NGOs and industry representatives. Join us for what promises to be an insightful session.
How to find a win-win situation for Europe's environment and economy – a "competitive sustainability" – will be the focus of our Conference in Stockholm, featuring European Commission Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager and Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson, Swedish Minister for Business, Industry and Innovation. I very much look forward to this discussion, and hope to see many of you there.
Take care,
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