President Juncker reflected on progress in the Commission’s priority areas, including growth, jobs and investment, giving a new impetus to Europe and engagement with citizens, the focus on big issues and cuts to the number of new proposals. The President noted that Europe has enjoyed seven years of growth (the EU and euro area have now grown for 25 consecutive quarters), 14 million jobs have been created, and unemployment is the lowest since 2000. The public deficit in the EU has declined from 6.6% (2009) to 0.7% and government debt from 88.3% (2014) to 81.9%. In terms on investments, he recalled the positive impact of the Juncker Plan and how more than one million startups and small businesses have benefited from it. President Juncker expressed disappointment, however, that the banking union, including a deposit guarantee system, was not concluded, as he considers it one of the keys to fighting future crises. President Juncker also listed successes such as the pillar of social rights and posted workers rules as important steps in providing dignity to workers, as well as the resolution of the Greek financial crisis.