Investing in Europe's prosperity
The Commission’s action has been oriented to build an economy that works for people and businesses, ensuring social fairness and prosperity.
Despite the strong headwinds of COVID-19 and Russia’s war against Ukraine, the European economy has shown remarkable resilience. The Commission’s actions have geared the economy towards modernisation, digitalisation, and decarbonisation, making it competitive and fit for the 21st century. The European Green Deal has laid out a clear growth compass, while NextGenerationEU, our audacious post-pandemic recovery plan, has provided the firepower.
Relaunching and modernising our economies with NextGenerationEU
To help Member States overcome the economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, President von der Leyen launched in May 2020 NextGenerationEU, the most ambitious financial assistance package in the EU’s history, with a total budget of over €800 billion.
Thanks to NextGenerationEU, the EU emerged stronger from the pandemic, while making our economies greener, more digital, competitive and resilient.
NextGenerationEU puts emphasis on the clean and digital transition. Payments to Member States are conditional on measurable, progressive results, which motivates authorities to deliver on the reforms and investments that they have committed to.
We have spurred investment, innovation, and creativity in the economy
Over €800 billion
Tangible results for Europeans
In France, NextGenerationEU financed the energy-efficient renovation of 20 000 social dwellings. In Spain, it supported over 60 companies in research and innovation for sustainable mobility.
Greece’s recovery plan includes measures to boost civil protection and response efforts in the face of wildfires and floods, as well as the climateproofing of transport infrastructure.
The Slovenian recovery plan includes measures to address floods. Following flash floods in August 2023, we set up a task force to study ways of better supporting affected areas with existing EU funding.
In a truly European partnership, Swedish Elekta and Dutch Philips are supplying key components for the installation of a magnetic resonance linear accelerator for cancer treatment in Malta, one of about 100 such machines worldwide.
Member States have also reduced unnecessary administrative burdens. Italy, for example, introduced several reforms to improve its business environment, notably reducing the time to set up a business to 4 days.
Almost 18 million households in the EU have received highspeed Internet access, and 247 million users have benefited from new or improved public digital services.
The Koralmbahn, a new 130 km railway between the Austrian cities of Graz and Klagenfurt, shortens travel time from 3 hours to 45 minutes. With investments of €543 million from NextGenerationEU, the project creates tangible benefits for the 1.1 million inhabitants living in the region.
Boosting innovation and job creation with InvestEU
By 2027, InvestEU is geared to mobilise at least €372 billion of private and public investment in our green, digital, and social priorities, with at least 30% on climate action.
The programme supports Europe’s competitiveness and helps implement flagship initiatives like the Green Deal Industrial Plan and the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform.
Over 200 InvestEU operations have been approved. This includes, for example:
€1.7
billion
to build solar power plants
in Spain, Italy, and Portugal
€1.3
billion
to modernise the Palermo-Catania railway line in Italy
€40
million
for renewable hydrogen production and storage in the Netherlands
€280
million
to support Czechia and
Slovakia clean and digital transition
Making the economic governance rules fit for purpose
In April 2024, the most comprehensive reform of the economic governance rules since the financial crisis entered into force. The new rules will help to bring public finances back on track in a realistic and gradual manner, preserve their sustainability, and provide enough space for investment. This system ensures strong national ownership, with realistic objectives, and a greater emphasis on the medium-term.
State aid rules that support the transition to a future-proof economy
EU State aid rules have helped Member States reach the European Green Deal objectives by providing public financing to ensure that companies carry out necessary investments at the least possible cost for taxpayers while ensuring a level playing field for businesses.
In line with the Green Deal Industrial Plan, in March 2023 we adopted a State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, which builds on the prior framework, adopted in March 2022 to enable Member States to support the economy in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine.
+€795 billion
total aid approved
€59.5 billion
in private investments
Trade policy as a driver of EU prosperity and geopolitical influence
During this mandate we have made trade policy more sustainable and assertive, while expanding our network of global trade deals.
During this mandate, the Commission has concluded five modern trade negotiations. These include three new-generation Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with New Zealand, Chile, and Kenya, which reflect our trade and sustainable development strategy including high standards of environmental protection and social rights. Likewise, we concluded our first ever sustainable investment facilitation deal with Angola – a prototype for cooperation in Africa, and a data flows deal with Japan. We have launched and continued negotiations towards future FTAs with key partners including Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mercosur, the Philippines, and Thailand. And we have deepened cooperation with partners through innovative forms of engagement such as the Trade and Technology Council with the US and India, and ongoing negotiations of digital trade agreements with the Republic of Korea and Singapore.
500 000
European jobs protected
€7 billion
of unlocked EU exports
Protecting our economy from
security risks while standing for an
open, rules-based world
The Commission has taken action to maintain fair competition by developing trade tools to protect our interests. These include actions on foreign direct investment screening, enforcement of trade sanctions, anti-coercion, and international procurement. We now have a powerful toolbox to prevent that foreign subsidies by non-EU governments to companies active in the EU distort the EU level playing field.
The first-ever European Economic Security Strategy identifies new risks to our economic security that have emerged as a result of increasing geopolitical tensions, geo-economic fragmentation, and technological shifts. It proposes a comprehensive approach based on protecting, promoting and partnering measures to strengthen the EU economic security.
Completing the most advanced sustainable finance framework in the world to channel private investment to the clean transition
The EU Taxonomy Regulation – a classification system of sustainable economic activities – is the cornerstone of the EU’s sustainable finance agenda, guiding private investment towards our climate and environmental goals. Since 2021, the EU Taxonomy has been developed through successive Delegated Acts to encompass around 150 economic activities, covering around two thirds of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe.
The Commission also set a legal framework for a Green Bond Standard, which was agreed upon in December 2023. Funds raised by this type of bond will be 100% aligned with the high environmental standards of the EU Taxonomy. That means investors in EU Green Bonds will be able to trust that their investments are sustainable, tackling the risk of greenwashing. With over one third of global issuances taking place in euros, the EU is on track to be the world's largest issuer of green bonds.
Moreover, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, in force since the beginning of 2023, requires large and listed companies to publish regular reports on the social and environmental risks they face, and on how their activities impact people and the environment. Investors now have the information to understand the sustainability impact of the companies in which they invest.
A solid framework for digital finance
Key achievements
Crypto-Assets
The Commission has led the way worldwide in setting rules for previously unregulated crypto assets. Since June 2023, the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation brings crypto-assets and their service providers under regulation and supervision. This pioneer Regulation ensures consumer protection, market integrity, and financial stability.
Digital resilience
The Digital Operational Resilience Act, in force since January 2023, enhances the cyber security of the financial sector in Europe and makes sure it is able to continue functioning at all times in case of operational disruption. With financial institutions depending increasingly on IT services, safeguards are necessary to mitigate cyberattacks and other risks.
Instant payments
The Commission put forward new rules for instant payments in euro, adopted by co-legislators in February 2024. Instant payments must be settled in no more than 10 seconds, which offers fast and convenient solutions for citizens in everyday situations, and improves cash flow management for public administrations and businesses, especially SMEs.
Payments and digital services market
The Commission adopted two proposals to keep up with the pace of change in the payments and digital services market: the review of the Payment Services Directive, to tackle payment fraud and financial entities competitiveness, and the Financial Data Access proposal, to set clear rights and obligations on customer data and help new companies provide innovative and convenient services.
Ensuring a fairer global taxation system and improving the business taxation environment
Minimum taxation is key to addressing the challenges of a globalised economy. The EU was one of the first jurisdictions in the world to implement the unprecedented agreement reached in 2021 by 138 countries within the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Inclusive Framework. We worked with Member States to ensure the adoption of the Directive enacting a minimum effective tax rate for multinationals. These ground-breaking rules came into effect on 1 January 2024, introducing a minimum rate of effective taxation of 15% for multinational companies active in EU oountries.
We must now concentrate our efforts on finalising the discussions on the other pillar of the global agreement: a fairer distribution of taxing rights among countries. Profits must be taxed where they are made.
We have also proposed key initiatives to reduce tax compliance costs for large, cross-border businesses in the EU, as well as for smaller companies. Dealing with 27 different national tax systems discourages cross-border investment and trade in the Union.
Keeping our promise to Europe
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