Citizens, organisations and authorities may comment on the Green Paper and its 114 concrete questions within a consultation procedure. The Commission wishes to reform the tools and methods of public procurement in order to improve teh process and to increase the efficiency of public spending. In future, public procurement is to take into account “policy objectives”, such as the promotion of innovation.

According to the Commission’s proposals “PNR data” of passengers travelling from or to third countries are to be collected by air carriers during the passengers’ flight booking procedure and must be transferred to Member States’ authorities. The Directive regulates data processing (collection, retention and analysis) through national authorities, the data exchange between Member States and the data transfer to third countries.

The Commission proposes two options for reviewing the Working Time Directive and invites the social partners to express whether and which issues they would wish to negotiate. The Commission intends to revise at least the provisions on on-call time and compensatory rest for on-call time (option 1). These revisions are anyway required by the ECJ’s ruling. The second option provides for a comprehensive revision of the Working Time Directive. The Commission aspires to increase flexibility in working time. Moreover, rules on the “work-life balance”, the “opt-out”, paid annual leave and individual sector-specific issues are to be reviewed.

The Commission’s first Annual Growth Survey marks the start of the first “European semester”. The “European semester” is an ex-ante policy coordination procedure between the 27 Member States. Consequently, the Survey contains recommendations for future economic policy and fiscal measures in Member States. The implementation of these measures is to support economic recovery as well as achieving the targets of the “Europe 2020” strategy.

The proposed Regulation (“REMIT“) is to reinforce the integrity and transparency of wholesale energy markets for gas and electricity. To this end, insider trading and market manipulation is to be prohibited. Moreover, the markets are to be monitored by the EU energy agency ACER and by the national regulatory authorities and market participants’ data be collected. In doing so, national regulatory authorities and ACER are to cooperate with each other.

The Commission presents new trade policy measures in order to achieve the growth and employment targets of the Europe 2020 strategy. The Commission is especially keen on the increased opening of foreign markets for services, investments and public procurement. Moreover, the future EU trade policy is support “green growth” and “climate change objectives” in principle.

In its Communication, the Commission proposes measures intended to contribute to more flexible labour markets, job creation, workers’ qualification and the improvement of working conditions.

The Commission’s considerations regarding employment policy are based on an EU headline target adopted under the strategy “Europe 2020” [COM(2010) 2020] whose aim it is to achieve an employment rate of 75% by 2020. In order to reach this target, the Commission is shifting its focus from a merely reactive to an anticipatory policy approach, as is already evident in the Single Market Act [COM(2010) 608] and the Flagship Initiative on the Innovation Union [COM(2010) 546], as well as an “Integrated Industrial Policy for the Globalisation Era“ [COM(2010 614)].

The Commission wishes to revive the single market with the Single Market Act, incorporating it into the economic strategy “Europe 2020” for sustainable growth and increased employment. The Commission has made 50 proposals, both legislative and non-legislative, which are to be adopted by 2012. The idea is that by “completing, deepening and making full use of the single market” an annual potential growth of 4% of the GDP over the next ten years can be achieved.

Forgoing “major spending programmes“ and focussing on the establishment of efficient framework conditions is reasonable from an ordoliberal standpoint. However, they should apply equally to all companies. Therefore, the Commission should forgo sector-specific measures; they bear the potential for competitive distortion.

According to the Commission, “major societal challenges” (e.g. climate change, energy scarcity and demographic change) can only be overcome through research and innovation. To this end, the Commission intends to improve the framework conditions for research and innovation and to coordinate innovations effectively. In addition to the establishment of a “European Research Area”, it propagates (pre-commercial) public procurement to promote innovations. In order to tackle “grand challenges”, “European Innovation Partnerships” are to be initiated.