Portuguese business group praises Draghi report
The Portuguese Business Confederation (CIP) on Tuesday praised the strategy outlined in Mario Draghi’s long-awaited report on European competitiveness, and called for more public support for the private sector to boost investment.
On Monday, Mario Draghi, the former Italian prime minister and former president of the European Central Bank, presented a report on the European Union’s competitiveness in which he estimated the need for an additional €800 billion of annual investment, equivalent to more than 4% of the EU’s gross domestic product—a sum larger than the US Marshall Plan for Europe after the Second World War.
He also advocated the regular issuance of common bonds, as was done for some time after the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Tuesday, the CIP said the report “embodies a clear change in European thinking” by “putting competitiveness back at the centre of policies that promote prosperity, sustainability, well-being, democracy and social cohesion in Europe.”
According to the group, Portugal’s largest business association, the loss of European competitiveness in recent decades has created a “worrying” gap between the EU and “other major world economic powers.”
The group attributes this gap to factors such as underinvestment in research and development, growing dependence on raw materials from outside the bloc, a lack of digital skills, and a slow energy transition.
The CIP argues that a new competitiveness strategy is needed, and this strategy must include “budgetary incentives to unblock private sector investment.”
It acknowledges that higher levels of investment will impact the public finances of member states but expresses the conviction that “productivity gains can mitigate budgetary costs.”
(Irina Melo | Lusa.pt)
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