The Services Directive has been a key tool to promote structural reform in the services sector. However, it is still not fully implemented and correctly applied in all Member States as businesses continue to face an accumulation of red tape, discriminatory practices and barriers that hamper the free movement of services.
IMCO has actively followed the implementation of the Services Directive and has led three own-initiative reports on the matter, notably:
- The Internal Market for Services: State of Play and Next Steps (2012/2144(INI)), Anna Maria CORAZZA BILDT, EPP
- Mutual Evaluation Process of the Services Directive (2011/2085(INI)), Malgorzata HANDZLIK, EPP
- Implementation of the Services Directive 2006/123/EC (2010/2053(INI)), Evelyne GEBHARDT, S&D
The latest resolution, adopted by plenary on 11 September 2013, argues that by unleashing remaining barriers and administrative burdens in the services sector, the EU could make an economic gain of up to 2,6% of GDP in the next 5 years. The resolution regrets the "significant numbers of identified cases where Member States are inappropriately invoking overriding reasons of public interests" for the sole purpose of "protecting and favouring their domestic markets". IMCO will continue following the work of the Commission in this domain, including in particular the latest initiative launched on 2 October 2013 of Member States together with the Commission assessing barriers restricting access to and exercise of regulated professions (professions to which access is conditional upon the possession of specific qualifications or for which the use of a specific title is protected, e.g. pharmacists or architects, see below on the revised directive on professional qualifications).
Rapporteur: Anna Maria Corazza Bildt (EPP)
The shadow rapporteurs are: Sylvana Rapti(S&D), Morten Løkkegaard (ALDE), Heide Rühle (Greens), Malcolm Harbour (ECR), Thomas Händel (GUE/NGL) and Matteo Salvini (EFD).
Source : © European Union, 2014 - EP