OREANDA-NEWS. November 18, 2015. Results from COBCOE's comprehensive pan-European survey on reforming the way the EU operates in order to promote and instill competition in business were debated at the Royal Bank of Scotland in London on the 11th November. The discussion will continue on the 17th November at the European Parliament in Brussels.

The findings, collated from the responses of nearly 1000 Companies in over 40 countries, clearly indicate that regardless of operating location, business believes that reform is necessary for the protection of Europe's position in the global economy. Specifically, respondents confirmed that reform to achieve competitiveness should focus on three key areas; regulation, finance and innovation.

Regulation was seen as necessary, but inconsistent implementation across Europe and variation in interpretation by individual member states, sometimes even internally, resulted in detrimental inefficiencies. This was seen as a significant barrier to economic development.

Respondents indicated a wish to see that regulatory reform be premised upon, and designed to, support business, expedite verification procedures and drive quality and the achievement of competition. Furthermore, the creation of a more bi-lateral approach to regulation involving a partnership between commerce and administration/legislature was advocated. It was proposed this should take the form of an independent council to standardise implementation and interpretation.

Finance and the development of a broader range of financing opportunities for business was viewed as critical by respondents. Encouraging the EU to reform in favour of developing extra-bank financial services and alternative finance was seen as essential to address the misalignment caused by the current system, which is almost entirely bank-dominated. Respondents saw closer alignment to a US-style system and markets as a solution to this issue.

Innovation and its promotion, essential to competitive development, was seen to rely upon closing a serious skills gap across all sectors and geographies in Europe. Hindrance of this was viewed as highly damaging to growth. Ensuring close cooperation between educators and employers was asserted as a necessity. It is widely accepted that this needs to become a reality by the mid term. However, in the immediate term, gaining access to talent, indiscriminate of its source, is critical.

In a robust debate, influential panelists and the audience explored these issues and their relevance to UK's present renegotiation process. It is clear there are many commonalities between what survey respondents had indicated and the current UK government's commercially focused proposals surrounding EU reform, especially with competitiveness.

There also seemed to be a consensus that there is already pan-European pressure on EU institutions to consider and act for businesses and promote their need for global competition. There was, however, considerable argument as to whether EU institutions were already recognising this, or would change the way they sought to support business.

Respondents recognised the significant benefit of having both a strong national identity and brands.  Assertion of the importance of product quality, coupled with a complementary European 'common brand' indicating quality, dependability engendering trust, elicited a split audience opinion. Members from larger countries did not discern the importance of this issue for smaller countries.

David Thomas MBE, Executive Chairman of COBCOE, commented:

"The results of COBCOE's pan-European survey, soon to be complemented and bolstered by conclusions from both the London and Brussels debates, have both provided the business community with the opportunity to vocalise concerns and ideas for reform, and offered regulators qualitative evidence of the seminal importance of competition in creating a successful EU trading bloc. Moreover, further surveying of the sample on the issues brought out in the debates will help in the production of COBCOE's final report.