“I expect the EIB to adapt its rules” to support European defence, says Thierry Breton

Speaking at a Friend of Europe’s event, Thierry Breton said that “we are lucky enough in Europe to be able to do everything in defence but not at the right time”. The European Commissioner for Internal Market was answering a question from a representative of the European Investment Bank (EIB) about the convergence between industrial policy and strategic investment and said he had met the EIB’s “new boss” Nadia Calviño the day before.

“The EIB is here to support European policies. Energy is part of the policy and defence is now part of the policy, so I expect the EIB to adapt its rules to make sure [it] follows our strategic vision and what is more important these days than our defence?”
The French Commissioner had previously sided with France’s approach to whether the EIB should finance nuclear energy, with Emmanuel Macron being a staunch supporter of the yes camp. Nuclear energy is a divisive issue for the EIB with Germany openly opposed.

On the internal market, Breton called it “a never-ending fight”, while recognising the lack of a “global coherent financial market”. Thierry Breton admitted that, looking ahead, “we still have things to do”, for example: “We are lacking a coherent global financial market and it is true that it is still too fragmented. The financial market is something that we are lagging behind in Europe and we need to have a much more integrated one.”

Dharmendra Kanani, Chief Spokesperson of Friends of Europe, quoted Kornelia from Poland, one of the 2,024 citizens that Debating Europe engaged with as part of its 2024 Voices – Citizens Speak Up! Initiative, the flagship report of which will be published on 28 February. As Kornelia said, “one of the most important economic challenges is adapting to the changing business environment and constantly innovating. We find it really hard and we don’t have the help to ensure that we are able to stay in the industry and up to speed.”

Thierry Breton admitted that the environment in Europe is not easy for startups. “It is true that when you are a startup it is not always easy to find the right financing solutions. We need to put [this] very high on the agenda of the next Commission. This is the thing that will allow us to boost all this innovation that I see everywhere in Europe, including Poland.”

The Commissioner for Internal Market is set to release a telecom white paper that could serve as the foundation for a new Digital Networks Act later this month. Speaking at Friends of Europe, Breton laid out his “global vision”: “This is my dream – to be able to have a global vision that we all share. This is what in the next 10 years we believe should be a network for the continent where for us what is important is cooperation and solidarity and not leaving anyone behind.”

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