EUROPEAN COUNCIL : FEBRUARY EU SUMMIT CANCELLED AS MORE PREPARATION NEEDED.

The leaders of the EU's member states will not discuss industrial competitiveness and policy in February. The agenda for their scheduled 13-14 February summit meeting has been transferred to 20-21 March, the date of the next European Council. In the wake of the last EU summit of 19-20 December 2013, Herman Van Rompuy, president of the European Council, announced that the February meeting was cancelled and that the agendas of the February and March meetings would be merged.

According to an official source, the decision was taken by the heads of state and government because "more time is needed to prepare the discussions". During their February summit, the leaders were supposed to address the issue of industrial competitiveness in Europe and adopt conclusions on a broad range of topics, such as innovation, access to finance for businesses, improved market conditions and energy prices. As it turns out, this last subject in particular needs more preparation. The Commission is set to present a communication on the 2030...