Lisbon process should focus on creating an internal market for energy

12.08.05pm GMT Tue 6th Feb 2007

"The European Council should strengthen its efforts to create a functioning internal market for Energy within the European Union. The status quo on this cornerstone of our economic future remains disappointing, despite recent developments", said Alexander Graf Lambsdorff (FDP/Germany) on Monday in Brussels in the debate on the contribution of the European Parliament (EP) to the Lisbon Strategy. "Heads of State and Government must, at their Spring Summit, make significant progress on this issue."

At the 3rd joint Parliamentary Meeting of Europe's national parliaments with the EP, Lambsdorff (co-rapporteur) outlined his views, placing a strong emphasis on the energy dimension of EU competitiveness. The document provides the basis for Parliament's opinion ahead of the EU summit on 8-9 March.

Lambsdorff called on the European Council to adopt the Energy Action Plan, that the European Commission had published in January. Furthermore, the governments of the member states are called upon to establish a road-map for reaching a target for renewable energies of 50% by 2040, an EU 30 % reduction of the CO2 target for 2020, and an EU target for energy efficiency improvements of at least 20% also by 2020.

"The challenges in the field of energy policy give Europe a chance to score as a modern region. The European economy should grow with the Lisbon Strategy - innovative approaches on energy production can make an excellent contribution to that", Lambsdorff concluded.

Addressing the Liberal and Democrat parliamentarians at forum Graham Watson MEP (ALDE group leader) pointed out, in the light of the IPCC report last Friday and solid scientific consensus on the human contribution to climate change, that Europe's future economic growth and competitiveness needs to be dovetailed with its environmental commitments:

"We need to discard the assumption that protecting our environment is detrimental to our competitiveness. Investment in cleaner, greener technologies that power our economies can bring economic benefits as well as new job opportunities and does not have to be a drag on our growth potential. The sensible EU response to both challenges is now to merge the Lisbon and Gothenburg agendas."