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Real steps must be taken next year to improve competitiveness, and the adoption of the new competitiveness agreement, the Budapest Declaration, an important achievement of the Hungarian EU Presidency, could contribute to this, Minister for National Economy Márton Nagy said in Brussels on Thursday.
Following the meeting of the Competitiveness Council of the European Union (COMPET) attended by ministers responsible for internal market and industry, Márton Nagy drew attention to the fact that the process of losing competitiveness in Europe has accelerated in recent years. He said that
the Budapest Declaration on the New European Competitiveness Deal could kick-start economic growth and the green and economic transition.
He stressed the need to further deepen strategic sovereignty of the internal market, reduce regulatory burdens and improve the business environment, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. “Competitiveness must be based on productivity and innovation, not on raising trade barriers, namely protectionism,” the minister noted.
At today’s #COMPET (Internal Market and Industry) Council Member States held a lengthy and lively debate along the lines of #HU24EU‘s overarching priority.
Finally, 25 Member States expressed their support to the Presidency conclusions on the future of the #European… pic.twitter.com/5PtGRTB66Z
— Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU 2024 (@HU24EU) November 28, 2024
He said the debate on the challenges facing the European automotive industry showed that climate objectives must be reconciled with industrial policy and competitiveness objectives. The problem, he said, was that
the EU had “rushed ahead” on climate targets and had not adapted its industrial strategy accordingly.
“We have not helped the automotive industry to meet this target and make the green transition,” said Márton Nagy.
Márton Nagy said that during the Council meeting there was a debate on whether nuclear energy is clean or not. The stakes of the debate are whether nuclear energy can be subsidized from the EU budget or whether it should be subsidized from national budgets, he explained. “In this respect, the Hungarian position is clear: Hungary considers nuclear energy as green and clean energy,” he underlined. A country that has cheap energy can switch to electric cars more quickly and save its industry, he added.
Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Purger Tamás