Evaluating Lisbon

Katarzyna Dębek: During the discussions at the Krynica forum we've heard opinions that the Lisbon Strategy is not a target to meet but more of an ideal to pursue, simply because it's unrealistic. Do you believe that the strategy is viable or is a new plan needed?

Viviane Reding: Well, it's not my opinion, but that of the 25 member states, which have agreed upon the new Lisbon Strategy, which is much more concrete, which is developed as a general vision on the basis of the very concrete analyses of the different national markets, and the national Lisbon Strategies have to be implemented under the guidance of the European Commission. So that is the European policy, it has been decided and I'm not going to come back to the things of the past. I prefer to focus on the future.

We have common goals but then, because we have differences in different member states, we have the national strategy in order to implement the common goals, to implement the common strategies so that's the policy on which Poland has also agreed.

Still, the common belief after five years of the Lisbon Strategy is that it has failed. What went wrong and what lessons should we learn from that?

This week the OECD has given the new figures of growth. Growth in the eurozone has gone up to 2.7 percent - that doesn't mean there has been a failure of the common policy, it means there's a growing economy.

There are big development differences between the countries within the European Union. How much time do you think it will take to bridge the gaps?

That depends on the political will of different countries. I always give here the example of Ireland. When Ireland joined the EU it was a very poor country. Now Ireland is one of the most thriving economies, it has taken advantage of the structural funds, the advantages of the big European market, and that is the way the others should follow.

How do you assess Poland's efforts in implementing the Lisbon Strategy and improving the competitiveness of its economy?

Poland has a long way to go.

Related article: Can Europe compete?