全球智库信息集成服务系统

This think piece draws together evidence on the state of the economy, society and the environment to show that the EU's multiple challenges may be tackled simultaneously by the use of policy changes to change the direction of market demand. Christian Hudson, the author of this document is Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute.

The piece convincingly argues that EU competitiveness and its ability to achieve political stability and social goals are held back by inertia in the policy framework. This reduces the rewards for innovation and weakens demand in the EU's domestic market, whilst giving insufficient market signals for firms to tackle Europe's societal challenges – like climate change and demographic change.

Using evidence from the OECD, and looking at the changed EU political economy, post-financial crisis and the arrival of the Juncker Commission, the piece suggests the institutional changes which can deliver the policy framework needed for a prosperous EU. It argues that the conditions are now right for systemic policy change. Indeed, this may be the only solution to the current political and economic discord in much of the EU. The document [pdf, 514 KB, English] is available for download.