About: European Policy Centre (EPC)

Competition policy: Help or hindrance to Europe’s economic recovery?

Competition policy is essential for sustainable growth and a pillar of economic recovery, while those who want to relax competition during the economic downturn or protect national markets and support inefficient national businesses are "wrong", said Joaquín Almunia, European Commissioner for Competition, at a European Policy Centre (EPC) briefing on 19 April. Extraordinary public support measures were introduced to help the EU through the crisis, but these are now gradually being reduced and markets will start to function normally again, writes the EPC in its report of the event.

Post-election analysis: Between apathy and anger, but no earthquake

In light of the election results, the new European Parliament will be less in favour of further enlarging the EU, more conservative and 'stingy' in terms of EU budget resources, more conservative on CAP-related issues and possibly more divided over fundamental rights-related issues, argues a June paper from the European Policy Centre (EPC). But the new EU assembly will be more engaged on climate change-related issues and legislation and ever-more focused on foreign and security policy matters," it adds.

Analysing the October European Council

"While the 15-16 October European Council agreed on the financial rescue package, they displayed growing disunity over the energy and climate package," according to the European Policy Centre's (EPC) post-summit analysis.

Treaty reform: over and done with…at last

Last week's treaty summit may mark the end of an entire phase of the European integration process in which progress has chiefly been made through institutional "giant leaps forward", argues a post-summit analysis from the European Policy Centre (EPC).