Brussels yesterday unveiled its proposals for a new economic strategy set to dominate its agenda for the next 10 years.

It aims to bring Europe out of the crisis and prepare the EU economy for the next decade, said European Commission President José Manuel Barroso.

The blueprint will be discussed and possibly endorsed by EU leaders later on this month.

Europe 2020, as the new strategy has been dubbed, will take over from the first 10-year plan, the Lisbon strategy, which had set a number of ambitious targets to be met by 2010.

Lisbon turned out to be a complete failure, even before the international economic crisis, but the events of the last few years drove the last nails into its coffin.

This time round, the Commission is trying not to be over ambitious and has set five main targets which the EU has to reach through an overall effort by all its member states. The aim is to achieve higher employment rates, more investment in research and development, agreed climate change targets, fewer school drop-outs and more graduates, as well as fewer people on the poverty line.

Member states will not all have to meet the same goal-levels by 2020. "We recognise that member states will be departing from different positions and therefore we want to design the new strategy according to the needs of individual member states," a Commission spokesman told The Times.

"Malta will now have to come up with its individual national targets later on this year and the Commission will then keep track of its progress towards achieving them."

The Commission will for the first time have the right to issue policy warnings to those member states that do not make the expected progress.

"Every year individual member states will have to present a report to the Commission with details of the policies being adopted towards reaching the national targets, together with results achieved on the ground. The Commission will assess these yearly reports and issue its recommendations," the spokesman said.

In an initial reaction, Malta welcomed the blueprint, saying it would now be studying the details in order to form its final position.

"However, it is worth mentioning that the Commission took note of Malta's suggestions, so much so that it recognises that the overall strategy cannot be a one-size-fits-all. This issue was raised by Prime Minister Gonzi during last month's economic summit in Brussels," a government spokesman said.

Mr Barroso said the new strategy comes at a time when Europe has a growth deficit that is putting its future at risk.

"We must decisively tackle our weaknesses and exploit our many strengths. We need to build a new economic model based on knowledge, low-carbon economy and high employment levels. This battle requires mobilisation of all actors across Europe," he said.

Europe 2020 targets

• Raise the employment rate of the population aged 20-64 from the current 69 per cent to at least 75 per cent.

• Achieve the target of investing three per cent of GDP in R&D in particular by improving the conditions for R&D investment by the private sector, and develop a new indicator to track innovation.

• Reduce the share of early school leavers to 10 per cent from the current 15 per cent and increase the share of the population aged 30-34 having completed tertiary education from 31 to at least 40 per cent.

• Reduce the number of Europeans living below the national poverty line by 25 per cent, lifting 20 million people out of poverty.

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20 per cent compared to 1990 levels or by 30 per cent if the conditions are right, increase the share of renewable energy in final energy consumption to 20 per cent, and achieve a 20 per cent increase in energy efficiency.

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