Not a week goes by without hearing about the urgent need to lift internal market barriers that prevent businesses and citizens from benefiting from a market of 450 million people. Business leaders, economists, European institutions, as well as heads of state and government, regularly condemn the obstacles to growth and competitiveness that these barriers represent. Yet, despite this apparent consensus, little real progress has been made. In reality, the issue is highly complex, as it requires challenging well-established interests that political leaders are often reluctant to confront.

Stéphane Séjourné, the executive vice president of the Commission, discovered the scale of the challenge while preparing the internal market strategy he presented on Wednesday, May 21. This strategy includes around 20 legislative proposals, spanning areas as varied as telecommunications, regulated professions, energy, postal and financial services, recycling, a unified rail booking system, labeling, cross-border car rentals, the creation of a single set of rules for companies operating in the single market and the harmonization of public procurement rules.

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