Top priority!

In her 2026 State of the Union address, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, placed economic recovery at the top of the European agenda. And rightly so!

The President confirmed the Commission’s intention to reduce economic dependencies in certain strategic areas and to strengthen the EU’s industrial capacity, whilst consolidating trade with partner countries. This balance between openness and strategic autonomy broadly corresponds to the positions put forward by most industrial and political representatives at our recent FEDIL Industry Day 2026. This strategic autonomy should stem primarily from breakthroughs in our competitiveness rather than from an overly broad application of the principle of European preferences. And where it is applied, care must be taken not to create new layers of regulation, which would entail additional administrative burdens or create barriers to the Single Market. As regards the agendas for improving our competitiveness and making better use of the internal market’s potential (the Letta and Draghi reports), we agree with the President when she laments the slow pace of progress.

In her speech, President von der Leyen rightly highlighted the recent simplification efforts initiated by the European Commission, in particular the 12 Omnibus proposals, but she fails to mention that these are primarily aimed at recent regulations, many of which are not yet in force, and that, from the businesses’ perspective and compared with the current situation, these regulations – even when simplified compared with their original versions – will create an additional administrative burden. The clear and important message to Member States to refrain from ‘gold-plating’ is entirely consistent with the objective of simplification and with the aim of preserving the Single Market.

As FEDIL, we note with satisfaction the importance the President attaches to energy competitiveness, at a time when high energy prices continue to weigh heavily on European industry. Her call to accelerate the development of low-carbon electricity generated in Europe, derived from renewable energy and nuclear power, as well as the necessary networks and storage capacity, addresses a key challenge: reducing dependence on fossil fuel imports and guaranteeing industry a reliable supply at competitive prices.

Finally, FEDIL endorses the objectives of supporting innovation and technological and digital development as drivers of our growth and resilience in difficult geopolitical circumstances. However, our potential in this area must not be undermined by a regulatory framework which the President was quick to mention and praise in the same breath. Striking this balance seems to us to be a major undertaking that will not be completed any time soon.