EU policymakers have noted that growing the region’s economy while maintaining its bureaucratic red tape is like trying to run a marathon in iron shoes.
Reviving Europe’s Competitive Edge analyses the European Union’s declining influence in the global economy and recommends concrete steps for the Commission on how to regain our economic competitiveness.
When Slovakia joined the EU in 2004, the union accounted for 26 per cent of the world's gross domestic product (GDP), just behind the US at 28 per cent.
Poland’s per capita GDP rose significantly after joining the European Union, reaching almost 80 per cent of the EU average by 2022, fuelled by increased trade, investment, and labour market opportunities. However, regulatory barriers, enforcement deficits, and incomplete service market integration continue to pose challenges.