Juncker ’ s Investment Plan and the European Fund for Strategic Investment

1. Juncker’s Investment Plan and theEuropean Fund for Strategic Investment Antonino Sorrenti, Intern, European Anti Poverty Network

2. Outline • The Guidelines • Putting the Plan into Action • The European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI): • Regulating the EFSI: the EP draft Report • The Latest Updates • Strengths and Weaknesses

3. The Guidelines The plan is based on three mutually reinforicng strands: • Mobilizing at least EUR 315 billlion additional investments at EU level • Targeted initatives to make sure that this extra investment meets the needs of the real economy • Measures to provide greater regulatory predictability and to remove barries to investment

4. Putting the Plan into Action • Juncker’s Investment Plan for Europe (Nov 2015) aims at 3 strands: 1) mobiliizing 315 bn investment; 2) targeted initiatives, 3) Measures to provide regulatory predictability/ tackle barriers to investment (ie single market). • European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) (Jan 2015) • Sets framework and money for 1 and 2 and provides guarantee of 16 bn to support the 315 bn fund – mainly private leverage. • Establishes a governance framework with Steering Board, Investment Committee and accountabilty to EP. • Main projects funded: infrastructure, transport, energy, digital, with some investment in education, health, research and development. • EP draft report on the EU Commission Proposal about the Regulation of EFSI (March 2015) • The regulation of the EFSI has to be adopted through co-decisions: political agreement between EP and the Council (May 2015)

5. European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI) Wheredoes the money comes from?

6. EP Draft Report • The governance of the EFSI needs to be further strengthened with the involvement of the EP • Continuing old measures with old money should not be the objective

7. Latest Updates:Political agreement between the EP and the Council • increased the contribution of unused margins by 1 billion • the Managing Director and Deputy Managing Director of the EFSI Investment Committee to be approved by the EP • the EFSI Investment Committee is to provide an independent and transparent assessment of the possible use of the EU guarantee by using a scoreboard of indicators, which the Commission is empowered to adopt through delegated acts

8. STRENGTHS • It could provide bigger returns for public money • MS contributions to the Investment Plan will be deducted from deficit calculations • It will serve as a support for other EU initiatives (such as Horizon 2020) whose implementation has otherwise been undermined by permanent austerity.

9. WEAKNESSES • Focus on infrastructure rather than social or people – Europe 2020 is not even mentioned • Leverage of public financing rather that new public money • Focus on mere job creation not on quality of employment • No priority to poorer MS • New slimmer CSRs reduced on poverty from 12 to 6, lack of coherence with mainly Employment.

10. DEBATE The next steps will provide the implementation of the political agreement reached by the EP and the Council. What role can EAPN play in order to “socially” influence the implementation?

11. Thank you for your attention! For more information contact Sian Jones, EAPN Policy Coordinator sian.jones@eapn.eu Antonino Sorrenti, EAPN Intern antonino.sorrenti@eapn.eu