Former European Central Bank (ECB) Governor Draghi warned on Friday that because of the government’s “satisfaction,” Europe is further lagging behind competitors such as China and the United States. He said that European economic competitiveness is declining because of Brussels and countries’ “failure to act.” A year ago, Draghi commissioned a report on EU competitiveness, with 383 proposals adopted by the European Commission as a framework for reforming the EU economy, but only a few proposals were implemented, the rest being subjected to political differences and bureaucratic disputes.
"Now, a year later, Europe is in a tougher position," Mr. Draghi said bluntly on Tuesday at the invitation of the European Commission to assess the effectiveness of its first year of implementation. "Our growth model is fading and vulnerabilities are increasing. 'Inaction' threatens not only competitiveness, but sovereignty." He added, "People often make excuses for this slowness, thinking that this is how the EU works, and sometimes this inertia is even seen as respect for the rule of law. But it is complacency."
Despite the European Commission's promise to implement Draghi's recommendations quickly, according to the Think Tank European Policy Innovation Committee, only 11.2% of its proposals were implemented and about 20% were partially implemented in the past year, while the European economy continued to stagnate, with the EU's economic growth in the second quarter of this year only 1/8 of the U.S.
For Draghi's warning, EU Commission President Von der Leyen acknowledged that the EU lacks "urgentness" in promoting competitiveness, but European officials said it was because EU leaders were busy dealing with issues such as the US-European trade conflict and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
According to Talya Petra, an expert at the Brooklyn Institute, Draghi’s message is very clear: Europe is either changing its economic pattern or being doomed to decline.