Internal Policies: Reinforcing the New Lisbon Message of Competitiveness and Innovation

Abstract

The reinvigorated Lisbon strategy was one of the central priorities of the Austrian and Finnish EU Council presidencies of 2006. Beyond a rhetorical commitment, two major pieces of legislation under the Lisbon strategy – the Services directive and the REACH (registration, evaluation and authorization of chemicals) regulation – were agreed during the year. The priorities of the Austrian and Finnish presidencies also reflected the postKok Report revised goals of the Lisbon strategy, giving primacy to competitiveness and job creation over social and environmental protection. The two presidencies’ most substantial internal policy accomplishments thus concerned competitiveness, in the sense of liberalization and lowering the regulatory burden. This article examines the main internal policy developments in 2006 in terms of the renewed focus of the Lisbon strategy. It begins by providing a brief overview of the Lisbon strategy before developing its arguments: the aims of the Austrian and Finnish presidencies incorporated the revised goals for the Lisbon strategy after the Kok Report and the substantive achievements of the two Council presidencies also reflect these goals. This article then examines legislative and policy developments during the year in this context, focusing in particular upon the Services directive and REACH as the two most important internal legislative developments of 2006 – and arguably the decade. JCMS 2007 Volume 45 Annual Review pp. 89–106