Public debate to feature on busy Competitiveness Council agenda
Internal market, industry and research ministers will meet in Brussels on 3 March at the Competitiveness Council. Among the items on the agenda are: the competitiveness aspect of the Lisbon strategy, the Green Paper on space, the international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER), the Community patent and a public debate on competitiveness. The public debate aims to inform the public of the issues considered by the Council to be key to improving Europe's competitiveness. The debate will centre on questions prepared by the Greek Presidency, which ask for ministers' opinions on issues such as the priorities to promote entrepreneurship in Europe, the impact of the European charter for small enterprises and balancing sustainability with the stimulation of economic growth. Ministers will discuss the Commission's Spring Report on the Lisbon strategy, and are expected to adopt, for the first time, a draft position on the competitiveness aspect of the Lisbon goals. The Commission will present its Green Paper on space policy and update the Council on the latest developments surrounding the ITER project. A recent meeting in St Petersburg saw the US and China formally join the project, which already involves the EU, Russia, Japan and Canada. The Council will also discuss a Greek-German compromise on the establishment of a Community patent. Discussions are expected to focus on a proposed centralised jurisdictional system and the preceding transitional period. Agreement is expected either at this meeting or by May at the latest. On a similar issue, the Council will hear a presentation by the Commission on its proposal for a directive on measures to ensure the enforcement of intellectual property rights. A Commission proposal adopted on 30 January seeks to harmonise Member States' legislation in this field with a view to combating counterfeiting and piracy more effectively.
Countries
Greece