The Lisbon Treaty reaffirms consumer protection as a horizontal and key EU policy, stipulating that consumer protection requirements shall be taken into account in defining and implementing other Union policies and activities (Art.12 TFEU). The European Consumer Agenda, the political document which was adopted by the European Commission on 22 May 2012, promises to do exactly that: to set out a strategic framework for the Union's consumer policy for the years to come, integrating consumer interests in all Union policies.
The purpose of an effective consumer policy is to ensure healthy markets in which consumers can operate safely and with confidence, and where cross-border trading and innovation are encouraged. An active consumer policy should enable citizens to reap the benefits of the internal market to its full potential, by offering them a wider choice of high quality products and services at competitive prices.
An effective consumer policy also depends on consumers and businesses knowing their rights and obligations under existing legislation and on their ability to apply them to their commercial transactions. Confident, well-informed and empowered consumers are key to the efficient functioning of markets, as they reward traders that operate fairly and respond best to consumers' needs. The increased complexity of retail markets, and particularly the retail services market, however, makes it increasingly difficult for consumers, especially vulnerable consumers, to make an informed choice when purchasing goods and services.
Tools like the Consumer Markets Scoreboard and the Consumer Empowerment Survey, which monitor the market, are essential to formulate policies delivering the best possible results for consumers, and are useful to be more responsive to citizens' expectations and to better understand the problems they face in their daily lives. It is therefore crucial to develop the right indicators of performance, in particular to measure consumer awareness and understanding. e.g. on EU labels and logos (cf. Bastos Report - Citizens' 20 main concerns).
Finally, having a number of important structures in place to tackle cross-border consumer issues, such as SOLVIT, the ECC Network and the Your Europe portal, it is important to focus on a single point of access (e.g. the Your Europe portal) and promote the strongest 'brand names'.
The European Parliament's main demands to the Commission on the future of the Union's consumer policy, were presented in the form of an EP's Resolution of 15 November 2011 (Triantaphyllides Report (IMCO)).
The response to the new Consumer Agenda which was published afterwards, on 22 May 2012 is being prepared in an IMCO report under the draftmanship of Vicente Garcés Ramón (S&D). Shadow rapporteurs: Sandra Kalniete (EPP), Robert Rochefort (ALDE), Heidi Rühle (Greens), Malcolm Harbour (ECR), Kyriakos Triantaphyllides (GUE), Matteo Salvini (EFD). The vote in IMCO will take place on 24th April and then the resolution based on this report will be voted in plenary in May 2013.
