Europese Commissie: problemen in autosector te wijten aan auto-industrie (en)
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – The European Commission on Wednesday (25 February) said it would not put forward an EU-wide plan to restructure the car industry, blaming car makers - not the financial crisis - for the sector's problems and once again warning against "economic nationalism."
"The commission will not be presenting any European plan to shape the structural changes necessary in the European car industry," EU enterprise and industry commissioner Gunter Verheugen i said at a press conference.
According to the commission, the car industry had been facing "longer-term structural problems" long before the financial crisis, and "primary responsibility for dealing with the crisis lies with industry."
"I do not believe for one moment that any government can be a better car manufacturer than those that we have already," the commissioner pointed out.
Citing carmaker General Motors' subsidiary Opel in particular, Mr Verheugen said: "The problems of Opel and other GM subsidiaries in Europe are not solely due to the current crisis, they are rather the result of a long-term failure on the part of the management in [GM headquarters] Detroit, in the USA."
"The European tax-payer should not have to pay for those failings," he added.
Opel is to present a business plan on Friday, following which the German government is to consider possible state guarantees for the company, according to press reports.
Meanwhile, support plans for the car industry from France, Spain, Britain, Italy, Germany and Sweden, are currently being examined by the commission, competition commissioner Neelie Kroes i said.
Fighting protectionism
Both commissioners warned once again against any protectionist measure in the sector and insisted "economic nationalism" would not be tolerated.
"Protectionism, it is quite clear, is not what the overall industry or the people of Europe need," Ms Kroes said.
For his part, Mr Verheugen said the commission would be ready to take on countries which would be tempted to give support to their national car industries, both in the EU and in the US.
"We will not accept any economic nationalism, rather we will make a decisive use of the instruments at our disposal to combat such nationalism and we will also ensure that the competition rules are in force, both within and outside of the internal market," he said.
According to a report in French daily Le Figaro today, France which ignited the recent debate on protectionism in Europe by offering €6.5 billion to national car makers Renault and Peugeot, is considering to drop a key requirement contained in the plan.
The two car makers would no longer be explicitly asked not to shut any French factories during the five-year duration of the loan.
Paris is now planning to only include in the plan "the minimum conditions" for car makers, notably on "territoriality," a government source told the paper.
Commission's approach welcomed
Separately, the commission on Wednesday presented a paper on the state of Europe's car industry, which it called "one of Europe's flagship industries," accounting for some 12 million jobs.
The sector has been hit particularly hard by the financial crisis. Car registration in January this year was 27 percent lower compared to the same period last year.
The commission said EU countries should provide "targeted support" to the industry and invest in "strategic technologies," as well as provide workers with training opportunities so that they can keep or change their jobs.
It also issued a set of guidelines to help EU countries design schemes for scrapping old cars, and encouraged them to use a number of EU funds -including the so-called European Globalisation Adjustment Fund - to deal with the crisis in the sector.
The European auto industry association ACEA hailed the Commission's paper and said its proposals should now be implemented rapidly.
"The paper clearly shows the need for urgent action and lists various options. What we now ask is to add an early deadline to each suggested measure," ACEA said in a statement.
The Czech EU presidency welcomed the fact that the report was coming ahead of two EU leaders meetings on 1 and 19-20 March.
The effects of the crisis on the car industry will also be among the main topics debated during a meeting of EU Ministers for Competitiveness in Brussels on 5 March.
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