ECONOMIC POLICY : INNOVATION: EU SEEKS VISION.

Many consider politics the art of problem-solving. Others argue that leaders should not be mere fixers. They should strive to bring about change by turning desires into reality. Meanwhile, most policy makers fight day in day out to implement the wish list they repeat in their speeches and media sound bites.

The terms innovation' and competitiveness' feature high on most of these wish lists since the recession has hit Europe. These are listed on recipes to overcome the current crisis, and are described as the pillars on which a sustainable and inclusive economy could and should be built. But the economic crisis has prompted Europe to attempt to improve its competitiveness by lowering salaries instead of increasing its R&D muscle. Thus, the innovation union' the European Commission aims to achieve remains in the realm of fantasy. While the EU's innovation performance has been stagnant for a while now, its main competitors, such as the US, Japan or South Korea, continue progressing.

Europe 2020', the long-term plan to transform Europe into the world's most competitive region, foresees a 3% of GDP expenditure on R&D. However, the crisis has called this strategic goal into question - and the consequences are serious. "Less innovative countries as a group are no longer catching up with the most innovative countries," said the Innovation union scoreboard 2013'. Since the launch of Europe 2020', the innovation index has dropped in nine countries: the UK, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Portugal, Romania and Greece - and most markedly in Bulgaria (-18.7%) and Malta (-16%).

"The EU doesn't do well when trying to reach the goal of making Europe the most innovative region in the world," admitted the President of the Party of European Socialists (PES), Sergei Stanishev, at a conference organised, on 17 September, by the Foundation for European Progressive Studies. The Socialists intend to place innovation at the core of the economy, because "not supporting innovation means losing jobs," argued Stanishev.

This negative trend in innovation has damaged competitiveness, and this in turn results in missed opportunities in job creation, as shown by the latest annual report on the competitiveness of industry in the EU and the member states. Industry and Entrepreneurship Commissioner Antonio Tajani will present, on 25 September, this report, which gives details not only on the EU's declining competitiveness but also on the increasing gap between the member...