Speakers
Objectives
Objectives
Against a backdrop of weak growth and persistent divergences within the EU, this session aims to move beyond well-known diagnoses and generic policy prescriptions to clarify the concrete constraints, responsibilities and trade-offs that continue to hinder a durable recovery in productive investment and productivity in Europe. The objective is to focus the debate on the real determinants of private investment decisions: expected returns on capital, energy costs, regulatory stability, labour market conditions and incentives for entrepreneurship.
The session will also analyse how economic divergences among Member States — including high public debt and limited fiscal space in some countries, and structural pressures on growth models and competitiveness in others — shape investment dynamics and increasingly constrain trust and collective decision-making at EU level. It will reassess the effectiveness of demand-led and interventionist policies, as well as major EU instruments such as NGEU and IPCEIs, to determine whether they have delivered durable productivity gains or mainly supported activity without strengthening underlying productivity performance.
Finally, the discussion will seek to clarify the division of responsibilities between national and European levels and to identify the conditions for a credible shift towards a productivity-driven growth model.
Points of discussion
- Which national policy adjustments are unavoidable to restore private investment, productivity and long-term growth?
Over the past two decades, many EU Member States have relied heavily on demand support, public spending and monetary accommodation. Yet productivity, productive investment and innovation continue to lag behind global peers. Why has this strategy failed to generate a durable recovery? What policy shift is now required? - Why do national considerations continue to prevail over European commitments?
Despite repeated affirmations of support for the European project and regulatory convergence, Member States often prioritise national political and economic interests. What prevents genuine alignment between national incentives and common European objectives? How can these contradictions be overcome?