European Commissioner Janez Potocnik Suggests Ways of Increasing EU Funds for Slovenia
In negotiations on the 2007-2013 EU budget, Slovenia should make efforts to secure sufficient money from structural and cohesion funds. Another crucial task for the new government will be to ensure that the country is capable of phasing the funds, believes Slovenia's European Commissioner Janez Potocnik.
Potocnik, who took part in seminar organised by the bank NLB and entitled "Slovenian Ideas, European Money", also stressed that Slovenia will certainly be a net recipient from the EU budget and, at the same time, get much more money from European funds than so far.
The second concept that can be advocated in the budget negotiations - a real decrease in net budget contributions - is dangerous and could make Slovenia a net contributor to the budget, he stressed.
Potocnik, who will be in charge of science and research in the new Commission, again stressed the importance of the Lisbon Strategy, which he says will be a key task of the new Commission.
EU members should show greater commitment to Lisbon objectives, and draft their own strategies that will pursue the same goals - greater competitiveness and concurrent sustainable development.
Potocnik doubts whether the stated goal of the Lisbon Strategy - making the EU the most competitive knowledge-based economy by 2010 - can be achieved, at least not from a narrowly economic viewpoint. Yet the direction is certainly correct, he stressed.
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