EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes congratulated Cyprus on its State aid control, noting that there ''has been a remarkable downward trend since joining the EU.''
In a lecture organised by Cyprus Chamber of Commerce entitled ''The role of the Competition Policy in the EU today,'' the Dutch Commissioner pointed out that with such a strong, service-oriented economy, Cyprus can benefit greatly from new measures to cut red tape such as the General Block exemption regulation (GBER).
The Competition Chief said that state aid is now better targeted to horizontal objectives of the Lisbon agenda to promote jobs and growth, rather than individual companies or industries.
''We have worked hard in all Member States to achieve this. But sometimes Governments' can't resist the political temptation to use state aid as a quick fix for a bigger problem,'' she said, adding ''that sort of protectionism might offer pain relief but it doesn't offer a cure or any guarantee of future economic or political health.''
Kroes said she shares the concerns regarding the production of energy using oil as a fuel, adding that the EU is determined to help member-states adapt to this new price environment.
She however express her disagreement with the proposed natural gas import monopoly in Cyprus, outlined in recent amendments to the 2004 Cypriot Gas Liberalisation Law.
''I cannot agree that monopolies are the best way, or even a legal way, to reduce the price of energy. In the past and today, monopolies have led only to less choice and higher prices. Whether it is through higher prices for final consumers, or higher taxes to subsidise an industry or company that otherwise wouldn't exist, no one wins from a lack of competition,” she said.
Referring to the European Single Market, Kroes added that this is probably Europe's and Cyprus' best asset in the global economy, adding that ''competition is at the heart of the single market.''
''Having an open door to the world's largest market helps us all. Buying, selling, traveling, studying – it is a world of opportunities for all of us, especially the young generation,'' she said.
Outlining the role of the competition policy, Kroes said ''competition policy is not what most voters think about when they vote or discuss Europe,'' but she underlined that competition ''it is the foundation of the single market.''
She noted that the best policy for consumer protection is a pro-active policy, that is, ''being active and stopping problems before it is too late to fix them.''
''This is the best thing we can do for consumers: prevention instead of a cure, so to say,'' Kroes noted.
She pointed out that the Competition DG cannot always conduct inquiries at the European level however, noting that often issues are best handled at the national level.
Regarding the challenges that lie ahead regarding Competition policy, Kroes said that state aid, cartels monopolies and concentrations will ''never run dry'' but are getting more complex and more global, prompting the Commission for the Protection of Competition and the European Commission to ''work all year round with other competition authorities to strengthen the net we use to catch cartels and identify other competition problems.''
Noting that the Competition DG is getting better every year, Kroes pointed out that we can issues fines but we cannot be everywhere at once and we cannot deliver justice to the victims of competition problems.''
''The best reform to fix this is the Commission's White Paper on Antitrust Private Damages Actions,'' Kroes said, adding ''if implemented this would mean that you – as a business or an individual consumer – would be able to seek compensation through the courts for damage you have suffered when someone has broken the competition rules.''
Kroes said that in 2007 the Competition DG collected 3.3 billion euros in fines from companies who broke the rules in 2007, which went straight back to the EU budget, reducing the amount of euros Cyprus and other member states have to contribute.
''We ask also: Have we increased competition? Yes. The single market is now deeper than ever, covering 27 member states. We make better merger decisions, catch more cartels and we do not wait for problems to get out of control,'' the Competition chief said.
