EU unveils new 'Made in Europe' guidelines to counter China
Some worried the guidelines’ lack of binding quotas would undermine their efficacy.
The European Commission has introduced proposals to encourage public authorities and bodies to buy goods and services from within Europe, aiming to counteract China's growing economic influence. The European Commission's proposals, unveiled on Wednesday, seek to overhaul EU public procurement rules and provide greater legal clarity for public sector buyers.
The new rules will allow authorities to preferentially choose European-made products without the need for binding "made in Europe" quotas. EU officials are concerned that current EU procurement rules encourage public agencies to select the lowest-priced bid, which can sometimes result in contracts being awarded to non-European firms.
The European Commission's lead official on industrial policy, Stéphane Séjourné, explained that the new regulation would enable buyers to have a more favorable approach to European bids and restrict or reject bids from countries without public procurement agreements or those not adhering to international public procurement rules.
Séjourné hopes that the proposals will promote greater democratic scrutiny over the spending of public money. The draft regulation, which will need approval from the European Parliament and EU ministers, aims to simplify existing rules by merging three laws into one. The EU estimates that public procurement accounts for 15% of its GDP, equivalent to €2.6tn (£2.2tn) annually, and sees this as an underutilized tool to support domestic companies, particularly in sectors like transport and infrastructure.
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