With the war in Ukraine, the COVID-19 pandemic and the slow growth of citizens' incomes, Europe began to feel that it is falling behind in your growth. This stated in "120 minutes" on bTV the Bulgarian European Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva, quoted by novini.bg
"In the last 50 years, there is not a single European company created from scratch that has reached a capital of more than 1 trillion dollars. In the US they are 7-8. If you look at the global index of the top 10 companies that invest in science and innovation, there has been no change in the European ones in the last 20 years. All three are related to the automotive sector. In the US, from the automotive, pharmaceutical, they are all related to high technologies", commented Zaharieva.
"This is a trend that hasn't been around for 2 years. But now it becomes visible. Before, it did not cause alarm - incomes were growing, and people did not feel that Europe was lagging behind. But with the war in Ukraine, the COVID-19 pandemic and the slow growth of European citizens' incomes, it has started to be felt.
"Mario Draghi's claims that Europe is clumsy, old and backward are not a judgment, but a fairly accurate diagnosis,", she explained.
"For me, one of the most important things we need to do is to simplify the procedures. In Bulgaria, if it is not so difficult to register a company, in Germany a notarization is still required. You cannot operate bank accounts unless you open an account in another European country. The truth is that we have not yet completed our single market. So one of the tasks we have is to create this 28th regime for innovative companies, which will allow them to operate much faster throughout our single market," Zaharieva said. "Before, attempts were made, we need to find out where the mistakes were," she commented.
"We need to start working immediately. At the initial stage, the idea is to have one common registration. That is, when one registration is made, it means that you are registered in the entire European Union. The Horizon program, which is a science and innovation program, is extremely cumbersome and slow. Administrative costs can reach up to 20% for one project. I made a commitment to the parliament, but not to be approved at the hearing, but because I sincerely believe that if we do not simplify our rules and procedures, we will not be competitive," she stated.