On 9 September 2020, the European Commission adopted its first annual Strategic Foresight Report, presenting Commission’s strategy to integrate strategic foresight into EU policy-making. Strategic foresight aims to identify emerging challenges and opportunities to better steer the European Union's strategic choices and to inform major policy initiatives. It will support the Commission in designing future-proof policies and legislation that serves both the current needs and longer-term aspirations of European citizens.
The EESC agrees with the European Commission about the need to modernise and simplify EU consumer policy and considers that the new legislative package contributes to bridging the gap created by the exponential growth of e-commerce, undermining consumer confidence and causing distortions to the single market.
Download — Opinjoni tal-KESE: A New Deal for Consumers
The EESC is of the view that the Better Regulation Agenda should become a permanent programme in delivering high-quality Union legislation without undermining key policy objectives or creating deregulation pressure.
Download — Opinjoni tal-KESE: Completing the Better Regulation Agenda: Better solutions for better results (own-initiative opinion)
The European Court of Auditors (ECA) has requested the Committee's views on whether the steps taken by the European Commission to enforce EU law have addressed European's concerns. The ECA would like to know which specific aspects of the monitoring of the application of the legislation in particular have caught the EESC's attention.
Download — EESC opinion: Monitoring the application of EU legislation
Impact assessments of any legislative proposals must be integrated and accorded due importance to the economic, social and environmental dimensions, including for SMEs. The Committee has called for the Parliament, the Council and the European Commission to agree on a common methodology on impact assessments and evaluations, which could also serve as a prompt for the Committee. It is extremely concerned by the findings on the shortcomings of social and environmental impact assessments and the follow-up to consultations. It calls on the Commission to be more transparent and to give fully documented reasons why a particular measure or proposal is or is not to be submitted for impact assessment and/or an ex-post analysis.
The Committee agrees in principle with the Commission's proposal.
Download — Opinjoni tal-KESE: Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2010/40/EU as regards the period for adopting delegated acts
