Speech

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
GCLC Annual Conference,
Brussels, 25 January 2018
"[..] That's the way we make Europe a fairer place. Not by tilting at windmills. But by sticking to our knitting."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Mediafin New Year Event, Brussels, 17 January 2018
"Our future can't just be based on elegant schemes drawn up by the experts in an ivory tower. It has to be a future that Europeans want, and believe in."

Speech by Johannes Laitenberger,
Director-General DG Competition
CRA Conference, 12/12/2017, Brussels

"Let us work with the presumption that accuracy and administrability go hand in hand. Accuracy without administrability is meaningless. Administrability without accuracy is pointless. So let us reconcile vigorous and rigorous antitrust. Let us reconcile speed and thoroughness."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Committee of the Regions,
1 December 2017
Competition gives people a wider choice of products, at prices they can afford. It encourages our companies to innovate and invest. And if companies -big or small- play by the competition rules, it helps to ensure that our economy works--- for everyone.

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Bocconi University Academic Year Opening Ceremony,
28 November 2017
[..] We need to act now. This is our opportunity to make taxation fair. [..] Closing the loopholes in our tax systems will help. But people also need proof that our tax systems are fair. [..] We’ve come a long way in the last three years. The culture is changing, in tax authorities and businesses.Now we need to show that, in ways that the public can see. Not so people start to love paying tax - that's never going to happen. But so that every time they do pay, they know that they’re part of a community where everyone – without any exceptions – makes their contribution.

Speech by Director-General Johannes Laitenberger,
Colloque de l'Autorité de la concurrence, Paris
24 November 2017

Après toutes ces années de droit de la concurrence dans le domaine de l'économie numérique, nous avons aussi appris que de nombreux marchés numériques ne présentent pas de prix explicites. […] On pourrait les appeler "les marchés sans prix monétaire". Cela exige que les autorités de concurrence se focalisent donc sur les autres paramètres de la concurrence: le choix, la qualité, l'innovation.

Speech - Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Honorary Doctorate Ceremony, KU Leuven, 23/11/2017
"[..] We can shape globalisation in a way that works for all of us. We can have European companies that are strong and competitive, able to match up to the best in the world. We can also have an economy that meets the needs of consumers, where individuals can count on a fair deal. And our competition rules can do their bit to make that happen."

Speech - Commissioner Margrethe Vestager
Rencontres de Bercy, Paris, 21/11/2017
"[..]We need to make sure technology doesn't undermine people's basic expectations of society. Whether that means privacy, or democracy, or fair taxation."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Web Summit, Lisbon, 7 November 2017

"[..] Companies have to take fairness and trust just as seriously as they do innovation. So we can make the most of what technology can do for us."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Chilling Competition Conference, Brussels 25 October 2017
"[..] When competition enforcement and regulation work well together [..] we get a market that really serves the needs of Europe's people. And that's how we make the principles of our Treaty a reality in people's everyday lives."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Bpifrance Inno Génération, Paris, 12 October 2017
"[..]We need to change the tax rules, not just in Europe but all around the world, so that technology companies make a fair contribution. [...] As public authorities, we know innovation matters. But we also know that we can't predict or control it. What we can do is give innovators the room to succeed. We can clear the path of obstacles. We can make sure innovation doesn't undermine the basic expectations people have of society."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Baltic Competition Law Conference, Vilnius, 10 October 2017
"[..]We can work together to make sure everyone, in every country in the EU, feels the benefits that come from fair competition. And we can stand up for a Europe that gives everyone a fair chance."

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager - EPC Policy Briefing, Brussels, 26 September 2017
[..] I think this is what Europeans expect of us.
They don't want to hear simplistic slogans. They want to see that we’re willing to manage these changes. To grasp the opportunities. To protect people from the risks. To use the influence of a market of 500 million people to make sure that globalisation works in the interests of Europeans.

TED Talk by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, New York, 20 September 2017

[..] Trust can't be imposed. It has to be earned.
Since the first days of the EU, sixty years ago, our competition rules have helped to build that trust.
[..] I'm convinced that real and fair competition has a vital role to play, in building the trust we need to make the best of our societies. And starts with enforcing our competition rules.

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, Ambrosetti Forum, Villa d’Este, 2 September 2017

"[...] We know that fair competition is the way for Europe to succeed. But it needs to be based on a real level playing field. [...] European businesses have what it takes to succeed. Our job is to build the right conditions, so they – and we – can make the most of that potential."

Speech by Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, Award of the European Prize for Political Culture, Ascona, 5 August 2017

"[..] There's no company in Europe whose history or whose connections put it above the law. Everyone who does business in Europe has to follow the same rules."

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
High Level Forum on State Aid Modernisation, Brussels, 28 June 2017
[..] We’ve come a long way to improve the way we apply the state aid rules. We’re now much better at being small on the small things, and big on the big things that really harm competition across Europe. [..] Now, we need to take the next step. We need to work on fair competition not just in Europe, but around the world.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager
Europa Lecture, Leiden University, 14 June 2017
[..] Our European values are as powerful as ever. People want to live in freedom. They want to trust their neighbours. They want a world that's fair, which gives everyone a chance.
Europeans are ready to take a stand for those values. Let’s all join together to make them a reality in our daily lives.

Speech, Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
Democrazy - Democracy in Crisis?

"[..] Learning to deal with social media won't be easy. But then, democracy isn't easy. It takes a commitment from us all. In every part of our democracy – local, national, and European.
[..] Democracy will only die if we stop fighting for it. I know you won't let that happen."

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager,
REDO Conference, Kolding, 1 June 2017

"We can see that free trade and open markets have created new jobs – and made old ones disappear. We can see that new technology has put all the information in the world on our smartphones – and turned our personal data into a commodity that's bought and sold.
It makes no sense to try to stop change in its tracks, and to throw away all the good that it's brought us. But we do have to shape it, in a way that puts people first."