Baltic Rim Economies - Baltic Port List

Expert article 859 Baltic Rim Economies, 21.12.2011 Quarterly Review 5�2011
A shared vision for promoting sustainable growth
By Matthew Lodge
The Baltic Sea is a true inner sea of the EU – its shores are
populated by EU Members States with the exception of Russia.
The successive Polish and Danish EU Presidencies provide and
additional Baltic dimension to current discussions, notwithstanding
the economic crisis across Europe, and the particular challenges
facing the countries of southern Europe.
If there is one lesson – and area of unanimous agreement -
from the current crisis, it is that, as European economies, we need
to take concrete steps to help promote growth and restart Europe’s
engine if are to avoid a backward slide into recession and a further
weakening of Europe’s competitiveness. Whether we are in the
Eurozone or outside it, we must work together to reform the
European economy. Given the extent to which the countries of
northern Europe and the Baltic Sea region share common ideas on
free trade, open economies, support for the Single Market and
budgetary discipline, we have an opportunity together to play an
important role in the response to the crisis.
One aspect where we should start is work between the Baltic
Sea states and wider Europe in order to ensure that the European
Union continues to develop and implement a strategy for growth
and competitiveness and which strengthens the Single Market and
fights protectionist tendencies.
Growth must be our number one priority. We face a harsh
realisation that many of our long-held assumptions, the result of
decades of progress, are under threat: our belief that the world will
always demand Europe’s products; our belief that Europe has jobs
for its people to do and that standards of living will always rise and
our confidence that European nations will always be global
economic leaders. One by one, these assumptions are being
called into question. Studies suggest that if current trends
continue, by the middle of this century, leading EU nations could
fall out of the world’s top-10 most powerful economies.
In a recent speech to the European Parliament, the UK Deputy
Prime Minister Nick Clegg highlighted the need for a fresh
approach. Policies which actively inhibit growth and diminish the
flexibility of our economies need to adapt.
In March the UK published a European Growth plan backed by
eight countries, including Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Estonia,
Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, which focused on boosting internal
and external trade, pushing innovation and reducing the costs of
doing business.
One key pillar of this Growth Plan is the completion of the
Single Market - both in services and the digital economy. This
alone could add 800bn Euros to the EU’s economy. That’s around
4,200 Euros extra for the average household every year. The
Services Directive should be implemented fully, with no exceptions
– for too long have we dragged our feet on liberalising services.
And a Digital Single Market – championed particularly by Finland
and Estonia – offers the potential to expand and develop the flying
start in digital innovations made by the Nordic and Baltic States.
From Spotify in Sweden to Angry Birds in Finland, we need both to
foster innovation by making both the establishment of new
enterprises easier and facilitating the expansion of small digital
companies by opening up the vast potential of the European
markets to digital services.
Our determined pursuit of economic growth, however, must
also take into account ecological and social sustainability. The
Baltic Sea economies, with their concerted efforts to tackle the
environmental problems of the Baltic Sea, clearly understand this.
The first effects of climate change may be less obvious here than
elsewhere, but it is none the less an immensely important issue we
need to tackle together.
These two challenges, boosting our economies and tackling
climate change, are directly linked. There are many who argue that
growth and being “green” are somehow at odds. That’s not how we
see it. By placing the emphasis on a low carbon economy and
innovating in cleantech and sustainable businesses – areas where
the Baltic Sea states have sought to excel in recent years – must
be at the core of our policy efforts to address the twin challenges
of climate change and economic growth.
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The UK Government is aiming to lead by example. We want to be
able to say “follow us”, rather than “after you”, when it comes to
green growth and climate policy. To get the ball rolling in the green
economy, the UK has produced an innovative new mechanism for
investing in green technology. The Green Investment Bank, the
world’s first national development back dedicated to the green
economy, will build on 3 billion pounds (3,5 bn Euro) of initial
funding. Innovative new businesses can help green the economy
and create more green-collar jobs. Finding the links between
innovation, growth and environmental issues can also provide real
solutions for future. The Baltic Sea economies could – with a
determined collective effort – form a hotbed for new sustainable
growth in Europe.
When considering the third important aspect of sustainable
growth - social well being - many of the Baltic Sea countries are
already providing the lead. This should be exploited and used as a
strength. The balance of increased competitiveness and growth
alongside the development of the Nordic and northern European
welfare model offers a challenge and potential example to the rest
of Europe. As the UK and Nordic and Baltic Prime Ministers
agreed when they gathered in London in January, the challenge is
to combine an increase in GDP with an increase in GWB (general
well being). The Swedish Government will take up the baton when
it hosts the Northern Future Forum in Stockholm on 8/9 February
2012.
And the history of the Baltic Sea region should remind us of
another important dimension - we must embrace the outside world.
The importance of Russia as a trading partner not just to the Baltic
Sea states but the wider EU should not be underestimated. In
addition to pushing forward the global free trade agenda through
the WTO, of which Russia will now finally become a member, we
need to work on the EU’s strategic trade relations. The bottom line
is that we need to support open societies in our immediate
neighbourhood through strategic partnerships which encourage
democracy, and the free movement of goods, capital and services.
With progress in these areas, Europe and the Baltic Sea
region can enjoy a bright and prosperous economic future. But
there are dangerous voices out there. We forget at our peril the
risks of increased protectionism: beggar-thy-neighbour approaches
are the surest way to inhibit Europe’s economic recovery. And, in
the long-term, our success and prosperity depend on removing the
remaining barriers between us, not putting more in place.
In the words of Deputy Prime Minister Clegg: “It is time to finish
what others started - reviving the ambition and spirit of the late
1980s and early 90s to bring down the barriers once and for all,
modernising and completing the Single Market by 2015,
demonstrating a commitment that encourages business across
Europe and overseas to invest now – when we need them to.”
Matthew Lodge
Ambassador
British Embassy
Finland
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