Estonian presidency: We need to work hard in the name of the EU single market

On Monday at the EU Competitiveness Council in Brussels, Estonian Minister for Economic Affairs and Infrastructure Kadri Simson said that achieving the EU single market requires a lot more effort from the member states.

According to the Minister, it is necessary to first and foremost change the mindset of the member states and that the single market needs to be developed as a service, in the same way that private enterprises provide services for people. „The services need to be tested before use, their performance measured and the user satisfaction later assessed,” she said.

The Minister said that the completion of the single market is a prerequisite for an economic growth in the future and for creating new jobs. "We need a more detailed understanding of what are these 'bugs' in the system, interfering with the correct operation," the Minister said.

Simson assured her colleagues that the single market is one of the priorities of the Estonian Presidency and that Estonia strongly believes in the need for the digitalisation of the EU single market.

At the Competitiveness Council, the ministers will also be discussing type approval of motor vehicles, digitalisation of industry, the European industrial policy, consumer protection, the EU's current economic situation and other topics. The minister presented the priorities of the Estonian Presidency at the Council and will also be meeting with colleagues from the United Kingdom and Denmark, as well as the Swedish Secretary of State in Brussels.