VDA Statement regarding EU Compass for Competitiveness

    VDA President Hildegard Müller regarding EU Compass for Competitiveness

    Statement

    Statement

    Berlin, January 28, 2025

    VDA President Hildegard Müller:

    "Europe is increasingly falling behind in terms of international competitiveness and attractiveness as a location. Brussels has so far failed to take the right measures to bring the location back to the top internationally and to continue to combine growth, climate protection, prosperity and jobs in the future. This task must be addressed urgently, especially in view of the geopolitical shifts and challenges. With the Compass for Competitiveness, the EU Commission has recognized this problem in principle and identified some of the necessary fields of action and corresponding measures.

    It is true that reducing bureaucracy plays a crucial role here. The concept of excessive regulation has failed. This realization and the associated change in mentality are long overdue. With the announcement of concrete reduction targets and the planned convening of implementation dialogues with companies, a paradigm shift seems possible for the first time. Whether these plans will actually be implemented, however, remains to be seen. It is now crucial to act quickly and comprehensively.

    Other important and long overdue projects that the EU now wants to focus on include expanding the network of international trade agreements and deepening the EU internal market with a view to a unified EU capital market. This is essential so that companies in the EU can not only develop innovations, but ultimately also finance and produce them here on the European market. The fact is that ramping up production requires a lot of capital - and too often investments have recently been diverted from here. Here too, concrete implementation is crucial to initiating a turnaround here, especially with regard to small and medium-sized enterprises. Banking regulation and taxonomy must be reformed accordingly in order to overcome financing difficulties.

    When it comes to decarbonization, the compass unfortunately falls short of what is needed. One positive aspect is that the importance of technology neutrality and the role of renewable fuels are highlighted for decarbonization. With regard to the far too high energy prices, people are looking at how these can be reduced. But at the same time it is important to back up the announcements with regard to the expansion of the electricity grids and the hydrogen infrastructure with concrete measures and goals.

    The urgent appeal to bring forward the review processes for the CO2 fleet limits to 2025 in order to make adjustments based on the findings is also incomprehensibly not taken up. Nor are technologies such as batteries and fuel cells mentioned in the entire report - future fields in which there is an acute need to catch up. Improvements must be made here, particularly in view of the importance of these technologies for decarbonization and the associated economic opportunities for the automotive industry and the EU economy as a whole."

    Press & Digital Affairs

    Simon Schütz

    Head of Department