30 Years of the Single European Market. Bruges European Economic Policy Briefings 41/2016

Micossi, Stefano. (2016) 30 Years of the Single European Market. Bruges European Economic Policy Briefings 41/2016. [Policy Paper]

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Abstract

Over the past thirty years, the Single European Market (SEM) has been the core business of the European Union, and enormous progress has been achieved in both ‘widening’ the economic activities covered by EU legislation and ‘deepening’ the acquis to overcome emerging gaps in integration in areas already covered by legislation. And yet, empirical evidence indicates that market integration has stalled on many fronts and, more importantly, that the expected economic benefits from integration in terms of higher growth of incomes, jobs, and productivity have fallen short of expectations, notably in the long-established EU-15 member states. The situation has not improved after the introduction of the euro. The purpose of this paper is to review the main developments in SEM legislation and regulatory activities over the past three decades; summarize the results of the SEM programme in market integration, highlighting the areas where gaps appear more important; and discuss the impact of economic integration within the SEM, including aspects that play an important role in feeding popular resistance to integration.

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