Launched in March 2010 by the European Commission, the Europe 2020 strategy aims at achieving “smart, sustainable and inclusive” growth. This growth is intended to be driven by three sets of engines: knowledge and innovation, a greener and more efficient use of resources and higher...

The objective of the paper is to point out the impact of public finances in the context of the Lisbon growth strategy. Official communications from the Commission and ECOFIN Council note that public finances can contribute to achieving the goal of higher growth and employment via three...

Over the course of the last two decades there have been numerous intergovernmental conference (IGC) negotiations: the 1985 talks that led to the Single European Act (SEA), the 1990-1991 parallel negotiations on monetary and political union that culminated in the Maastricht Treaty on European...

Public finances difficulties in many eurozone countries raised the question of the project's durability, eventually of the exit of the most problematic states. From legal viewpoint such a step is difficult to take, moreover, there are numerous practical obstacles whose solution will make the...

La Unión Europea (UE) tiene que aprovechar su potencial como primer donante mundial de ayuda al desarrollo y reforzar su papel en la escena internacional. Para ello, la UE y sus Estados miembros han de dotar a la política europea de cooperación al desarrollo de una mayor eficacia y...

With the establishment of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) in 1999, the EU achieved considerable progress regarding the institutionalisation of its foreign policy. Various innovations were included in the Lisbon Treaty to address the cohesion and effectiveness problem of the EU....

This paper undertakes a rigorous analysis of the effects of policies to respond to the looming demographic pressures in Europe and elsewhere. We examine the impact of fiscal adjustment by itself, and when pursued in combination with tax, labor and product market reforms, using the IMF's Global...

The study sets out 83 indicators for the inclusion of the gender perspective in the evaluation of the Europe 2020 Strategy during the European Semester process. The indicators encompass the five EU 2020 headline targets and will introduce a gender perspective into the indicators dashboard of the...

Members of the European Network of Ombudsmen met in Copenhagen in October 2011 to discuss and reflect on 'Law, politics and ombudsmen in the Lisbon era'. Their deliberations centred on two topics: 'Ombudsmen between politics and law' and 'Bridging the gap between the EU and its citizens'. This...

This study assesses the European Semester's effectiveness and legitimacy. Effectiveness is constrained by the fact that spillovers, in particular in the euro area, are insufficiently accounted for and recommendations lack prioritisation across countries and policy areas. Legitimacy derives from...