Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) The European Commission marked the 30th anniversary of the EU single market, reminding that it was established in 1993.
In a statement released on Monday, the EC pointed out that the common market makes it easier to move goods, services, capital and people around the EU, which creates opportunities.
“Over 30 years, the single market has led to an unprecedented market integration between member states’ economies, serving as a driver for growth and competitiveness and supporting Europe’s economic and political power at a global level,” the EC stressed.
Margrethe Vestager, European Commissioner for Competition, noted that “the single market is the world’s largest trading bloc… it provides opportunities for millions of businesses as well as for consumers in Europe.”
She added that the bloc proved resilient to shocks and crises in the last two years and concluded “that is why we have proposed the Single Market Emergency Instrument… to ensure that it also works in times of crisis.”
More than a market
Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for Internal Market, stated “the single market is much more than just a legal framework – or indeed a market.”
He stressed the importance of continuously re-inventing, improving and preserving the common market “by ensuring that the rules we have agreed collectively are also applied collectively.”
Breton added that the EU has to put small and medium-sized enterprises “at the centre of Europe’s competitiveness” and ensure that companies and citizens “have access to the goods and services they need, when they need them.”
He concluded that “the single market gave the EU a continental scale and therefore the capacity to project itself onto the global stage.”
The EC noted that the single market helped the bloc to deal with the coronavirus crisis and the energy crisis, blaming Russia for the latter and stressing that protecting the single market will help the EU to respond to new challenges.
The body reminded that the single market helped it to accelerate the green push, which has improved “the lives of all Europeans.”
“To ensure that the single market remains a common good that delivers for all people in the EU, the Commission continuously works on its development in new areas and ensures that the rules which are already in place work in practice,” the EC concluded.
