France must take inspiration from David Cameron on Europe

This is the argument made in a very interesting op-ed penned by French MEP (and former Justice Minister) Rachida Dati, of the centre-right UMP party, for today's Le Figaro. We reported on the article in today's press summary, but we thought it was worth translating it (almost) in its entirety.

Here it is:

Is a new wind blowing through Brussels? The old myth of [European] federalism may be falling...The elite cheers the self-proclaimed 'Europeans', who, to preserve their post, write pamphlets lamenting this technocratic Europe, rejected by the peoples and origin of all populist movements. Some others want to change things, acting against the tide of the 'Brussels elite'. These are the modern, the courageous, the defenders of a realist Europe. David Cameron is one of them.

When he proposes to the British people a referendum on the UK's future in the EU, he acts responsibly. To deny [a referendum] to the British people, who are asking for it, would be the best means to exacerbate the anti-European sentiment that is on the rise not only across the Channel, but everywhere in Europe. When [David Cameron] proposes repatriating certain competences from Brussels to the national level, that's what we want too!

We believe, like David Cameron, that the future of Europe depends on it. It's with this same spirit that we must move forward with useful deregulation. David Cameron has had the audacity to put this idea onto the European agenda. Even [European Commission President] Barroso, the 'pusillanimous', has been forced to launch the REFIT programme, aimed at simplifying and easing EU law.

[...]

[French President] François Hollande is right to be cautious with the British offensive, which is good in the form, but whose exact outline we don't know yet. An ultra-liberal initiative would backfire against the people we say we are listening to. It is imperative to simplify [EU regulation] to boost the competitiveness of European businesses, especially SMEs. But this simplification must not be done to the detriment of certain rights of workers or the safeguard of citizens’ private life. However, this is a debate that deserves to be opened.

Ms Dati then goes on to address a specific EU policy area:

I plead for this simplification to be applied to the domain of energy as a matter of priority...The most serious problem [with EU energy policy] is the multiplicity of contradictory environmental, energy, and climate targets. Taken individually, these targets are laudable. But the facts have proven that, combined, they could cancel each other out - not to speak of the damage done to the competitiveness of our businesses. 

This is the case with renewable energy. Due to the subsidies it benefits from, the market is distorted as its use is prioritised. By their own nature, these sources of energy are intermittent, and cannot cope with energy demand on their own...I intend to make the ambition for a European energy policy that is more flexible in its targets and, finally, consistent, one of the priorities of the UMP's campaign for [next year's] European elections.

The UMP must finally stop hesitating about its European stance. We have never been listened to so much as when we knew how to talk and listen to the [French] people, particularly the popular classes. On Europe, they are asking us for a realist revolution. Let's listen to them!   

The war on EU red tape: Will this time be any different?

The headlines above speak for themselves. From time to time, the European Commission makes an announcement that it will make EU business rules "lighter", "simpler" or "smarter". But it deliberately stays away from the terms "deregulation" or "less regulation". They are usually a mixed bag, ranging from measures with real impact to irrelevant to even involving more regulation. To date, none of these initiatives have come anywhere close to achieving less, but better EU regulation across the board, that we and many businesses are calling for.

The European Commission has now unveiled the first results of REFIT - or its Regulatory Fitness and Performance Programme. Based on a 'screening' of the entire stock of EU legislation, the Commission has set out what it's planning to do (or not do) to make EU law lighter.

So will this time be different? Well, yet again, the proposal is a mixed bag.

The good stuff:

The Commission lists a number of proposals it has already put out, and are pending approval from member states and MEPs. Some of these would have a positive impact, including:

• Making EU public procurement rules more SMEs-friendly, mainly via the reduction of the paperwork needed to bid for contracts;
• Making it easier for professional qualifications to be recognised in different member states;
• A one-stop-shop for clinical trials.

The Commission also stresses it is already carrying out (or will do so in the near future) thorough evaluations of EU regulations in a dozen policy areas. These include:

• All EU rules on health and safety at work (no less than 23 separate Directives at the moment) - though the evaluation would only be published by the end of 2015;
• EU rules on temporary agency workers (which cost the UK economy around €2 billion a year);
• The Renewables Directive, which is dated and ridiculously micro-managing.

These rules are in desperate need of revision, so well done Commission for identifying them.

The not-so-good stuff:

Dropping proposals that are dead in the water: The Commission is offering to scrap proposals that are pending and unlikely to be adopted, which of course has no tangible impact as they haven't been adopted yet. Some of the proposals identified (e.g. a Directive simplifying VAT obligations or a Regulation on the statute of a European private company) have been pending for ages and were unlikely to ever come to pass.

Turning several rules into one rule:  The Commission also puts forth several ideas for the 'codification' and the 'consolidation' of existing legislation, meaning turning different sets of rules into one set of rules. As we pointed out in the past, if you merge ten existing directives into one, you definitely make the acquis more user-friendly, which has value in itself. However, if the substance of the rules remain, the impact on business will also remain pretty much the same, so this is of limited value on the ground.

More EU harmonisation: Somewhat cheekily, the Commission has also snuck in a proposal for more EU integration in a contentious area by presenting a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base as an example of simplification. Now, there may be a business-case for a CCCTB, but this also seems like back-door 'harmonisation' - which is a very different thing from 'simplification'.

In conclusion, so far there are some positive steps in here, but whether it will turn into a serious, de-regulatory exercise - with real impact on businesses - will very much depend on what comes out of the Commission's review and level of follow through.