The Lisbon strategy was approved at the Lisbon European Council in spring 2000 with a ten-year timeframe (until 2010). The main aim of the Strategy is to promote the economic growth and competitiveness of the EU, especially in relation to the USA.

Lisbon Strategy

Motive of Lisbon Strategy‘Lisbon Strategy’ has been one of the most commonly used terms in the European Union for some time now. The Strategy was adopted at the Lisbon European Council in spring 2000 with a ten—year timeframe (until 2010). It was a reaction to the serious, long—term weaknesses in the economic performance and competitiveness of EU Member States. The EU was attempting to close the gap swiftly in these areas and become a respected player in the global world. However, it soon became clear that achieving the Lisbon objectives would be very difficult.

In November 2004, a relatively extensive report was presented by the High Level Group of Independent Experts chaired by Wim Kok, the former prime minister of the Netherlands. This group was tasked by the Commission to assess the mid—term results, help identify the causes of the mediocre advances, and make recommendations on how to proceed in order to meet the Lisbon objectives. The Kok Report proposes that hitherto obstacles hindering the implementation of the Lisbon programme should be dismantled and that the potential of EU countries should be tapped to the full. In this respect, it recommends that attention be focused on priorities in five areas:

1. Creation of the knowledge society
2. Completion of the internal market and promotion of competition
3. Favourable climate to enterprise
4. Flexible and integrated labour market
5. Environmental protection and sustainable development

The Kok report thus confirms that ‘the Lisbon Strategy was and is Europe’s best response’ to the multiple challenges facing it. Based on the Kok report, the European Commission drew up a Mid—Term Review of the Lisbon Strategy. The report changes the concept of the Lisbon Agenda and proposes institutional changes in relation to the management of the whole process. It was proposed that the Agenda be narrowed to ten priority areas classified into three blocks:

1. Making Europe a more attractive place for investment and employment

2. Knowledge and innovation for growth

3. Creating more and better jobs

The European Commission also recommends that the European Council commence a new Partnership for growth and jobs, which should enable the Member States, the European Union and social partners to work towards a common goal — to accelerate the pace of reforms to boost growth and employment. The European Commission also recommends that the European Council support the Lisbon Action Programme and call on Member States to draw up their own National Lisbon programmes.

From the aspect of the further development of the Lisbon Agenda, by far the most important is the proposal of institutional changes in relation to the management of the whole process. The aim of these changes is to simplify and streamline hitherto practices in the coordination of economic policies at the level of the EU and Member States, and to prepare national strategic documents linked to the Lisbon Agenda. At the same time, the goal of the proposed changes is to improve the implementation of the set priorities, especially at national level.

In particular, it is important that the revised Lisbon Strategy, in its new three—year cycle, will apply some of the already existing instruments for the coordination of the EU’s economic policy. The main factor in this respect is the newly proposed Integrated Guidelines for Growth and Jobs 2005—2008, which merges the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines and the Employment Guidelines into a single document. This will allow for the more efficient appointment of a framework for the economic policy priorities of Member States in relation to the refocused Lisbon Strategy.

Based on the Integrated Guidelines for Growth and Jobs, each Member State was meant to adopt its own National Reform Programme (NRP) and submit it to the European Commission by 15 October 2005; this requirement was respected. The NRP is a binding, concise political document on the priorities and measures of the Member State in macroeconomic and microeconomic areas and in its employment policy, with the aim of stimulating economic growth and employment in the upcoming three—year period. Each Member State’s NRP should correspond to the current requirements of the Member State and its specific starting point in meeting the objectives of the revised Lisbon Strategy. The content of the NRP was consulted with all the entities involved at regional and national level, including parliamentary bodies and economic and social partners.

The EU dimension of the Lisbon Strategy will be covered by the Community Lisbon Programme, encompassing goals and measures designed to boost economic growth and jobs, which should be adopted at European level. The greatest challenge is the completion of the internal market, especially in services, and the ongoing process of simplifying the regulatory environment in the EU.

The cornerstone of the newly structured Lisbon Strategy will therefore be action programmes at national level (National Reform Programmes) and an action programme at EU level (the Community Lisbon Programme). This will result in the clearer determination of responsibility for the fulfilment of sub—measures at national and Community level.

The Czech Republic was already participating in the fulfilment of the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy in the pre—accession period, and was one of those countries which maintained an active approach to the strategy’s orientation and, in particular, to the need for institutional changes in the management of the whole process. Many of the proposals presented by the Czech Republic in the scope of EU negotiations have been reflected in the proposal for the new cycle of governance, which the Czech Republic believes to be a necessary step if the further existence of the Lisbon Strategy is to be meaningful.

                The situation is much the same as regards the new focus of the Lisbon Strategy and the content of the Integrated Guidelines for Growth and Jobs (2005—2008), based on which the Czech Republic — like other Member States — has drawn up a National Reform Programme, which has three parts: a macroeconomic part, a microeconomic part, and employment policy. The Integrated Guidelines are the general framework used to appoint priorities in relation to the Lisbon Strategy; it is up to the Member States to incorporate into their National Reform Programme the recommendations which they consider to be important for the specific needs of their national economy.

We expect the National Reform Programme to contribute to the clear formulation of the necessary steps and to the setting of the priorities of the Czech Republic’s economic policy. Besides measures to enhance the quality of public finances, the Czech Republic has focused in particular on measures to improve the business environment and support research, development and innovation. Another priority is human resources development, where the implementation of measures will result in greater labour market flexibility and the creation of a knowledge society.

Under Resolution of the Government of the Czech Republic No 622 of 1 June 2005, the Ministry of Industry and Trade was appointed the coordinator of the microeconomic part of the Czech Republic’s National Reform Programme. The microeconomic part contains ten principal integrated guidelines. In this microeconomic part, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has prepared four priority areas for the Czech Republic. These priorities are: Business Environment; Research and Development, Innovations; Sustainable Use of Resources; Innovation and Take—Up of Transport and ICT Networks.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade ranks the fulfilment of the Lisbon Strategy objectives among its priorities. The Ministry is responsible for the coordination of the energy sector, the support of small and medium—sized enterprises, and the market in services. A long—term priority of the Ministry of Industry and Trade is to strengthen the competitiveness of Czech undertakings. A key task for the European Union is to set up an efficiently functioning internal market that will have a positive impact on the economic growth of European countries.

On 14—17 November 2005, a meeting of the Working Party for the Examination of EU Member States was held in Brussels in the scope of a session of the Economic Policy Committee (EPC), at which the National Reform Programmes of the individual Member States (including the Czech Republic) were assessed. The Czech Republic, in the scope of the EPC working party, was required to evaluate the Danish National Reform Programme. The Czech Republic’s National Reform Programme was examined on 15 November 2005. The examining country was Lithuania. Overall, the Czech Republic’s National Reform Programme was rated positively, as was the approach adopted by the Czech Republic in the examinations, which was reflected in the conclusions of the working party.

The Lisbon Strategy seeks to find solutions to the long—term macroeconomic and structural problems of the European Union as a whole and of the individual Member States, and can contribute to the improved consistency of positions when setting the priorities of national economy. The success or failure of the Lisbon Strategy is sure to signal how capable the European Union is of tackling its current economic problems.