On 17 September 2019, a seminar that aimed to stimulate Swedish participation in an important European debate, was held. It marked the initiation of a research project on EU industrial policy to be conducted by SIEPS.
The European Council has invited the European Commission to present, by the end of 2019, a long-term vision for the EU's industrial future. Pressures from state capitalist China, a protectionist US, forces resulting from digitalisation and from climate change are all examples said to justify the urgent need to elaborate an EU industrial policy.
So, is this just smokescreen for reverting to old protectionist policies? Or has something fundamentally changed that requires Europeans to strive for the establishment of a “level playing field” in terms of global competition, and to create “European strategic autonomy” in areas of global value chains, to cite a few common buzzwords?
Presentation by Fabian Zuleeg: "A renewed strategy for Europe: An Industry Action Plan for the EU"
