Thursday, March 1, Vilnius - The European Council meeting, which is attended by President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė, approved the priorities of economic policy in 2012, Press Service of the President reports.To achieve quicker recovery and growth of the EU economy, this year all countries should pool their efforts to ensure financial discipline, revival of business loans, boosting of economic growth and jobs, modernization of public administration.
All EU member states will be obliged to comply with these priorities when planning their economic policies and budgets as well as developing national reform and convergence programmes. The European Commission will assess these programmes and provide country-specific recommendations as appropriate.
“Fiscal discipline is a protector for the future. However, the primary concern for the people of Lithuania and Europe as a whole is how we live today. The priorities approved by the European Council are orientations for the governments of each country to the objectives they should focus on,” the President underlined.
The European Council also discussed the macroeconomic situation of EU member states. The European Commission has indicated twelve countries where situation is to be observed more closely. Lithuania is not among these countries. However, according to the President, we have to continue abiding by the underlying rule – to live within our means and ensure sustainable growth of economy.
According to the President, the situation differs between countries in the European Union, therefore different strategies, though based on the same approach, will have to be pursued. Lithuania will have to exert greater effort and perform better in the fields of investment and reduction of unemployment.
Lithuania’s government will also have to find effective measures to improve business environment, restructure the pension scheme, ensure the collection of taxes, and reduce the administrative burdens which pose obstacles to new business opportunities. Among key priorities in reducing unemployment should be youth employment as young people are those who have been most severely affected by the recession.
The heads of European Union countries re-elected Herman Van Rompuy as European Council President for a second mandate of 2.5 years. He will also chair the euro summits. Tomorrow, President Dalia Grybauskaitė will participate in the signing of the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union which gets support from most EU countries.
