Pedro Sánchez defends the need to strengthen competitiveness without renouncing the European social model

Alden Biesen Castle, Bilzen (Belgium)

Group photo of the European Union leaders attending the informal reflection session (Pool UE)

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, took part in the informal reflection session of the European Council at Alden Biesen Castle, where he reiterated the importance of acting now to strengthen our competitiveness, not as an end in itself, but as the essential basis of our strategic autonomy. In this respect, he stressed the need to move in this direction without compromising fundamental values and principles, or renouncing the European social model.

The president focused his speech on three areas in which Spain argues that Europe needs to make substantial progress: sustainability, investment and human capital. In this regard, he argued that Spain firmly believes that strategic autonomy is intrinsically linked to the need to continue to invest in renewables and to increase investments in generation, grids and interconnections.

In the area of investment, he stressed the importance of increasing the amount to a level commensurate with our European challenges. Spain argues that security and defence, technology and green industries, among others, are European public goods, and as such require European funding.

Pedro Sánchez reiterated that the competitiveness of the EU and our welfare model must advance hand in hand, without compromising the Social Pillar.

In this regard, he insisted on the importance of ensuring access to affordable housing, of building a labour market capable of developing the human capital of the 21st century, and of carrying out a strengthened European cohesion policy.

The leaders' retreat included two working sessions, one with economist Enrico Letta, which focused on the internal market and other policies, and the other with former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi, which focused on geo-economics.

Non official translation