"There is no time to waste, the gap between the EU and the USA is becoming increasingly wider. The possibility of strengthening the single market is opening up to eliminate fragmentation starting from the three" points left behind: "energy, telecommunications and financial markets". "The main proposal is to integrate them," said former prime minister Enrico Letta as he arrived at the European Council to present his report on the future of the single market. "The other part of the report concerns the social dimension of the single market, how to help workers, how to help citizens and how to promote innovation" recalling "the proposal on the fifth freedom, which is the way to add all the normal traditional freedoms the freedoms of the movement of goods, services, capital and people, a fifth freedom on innovation, research, knowledge, data and artificial intelligence".
"We must run, in the next legislature we must close the gap, especially with the USA - he said presenting his report to the leaders -. When we launched the single market the world was totally different, there was still the USSR and India and China together were worth 5% of global GDP. My proposals are pragmatic, it is not a dream book. I do not propose changes to the treaties because I know that it is not the right path instruments".
"The report I will present puts citizens at the centre, competitiveness which means prosperity for citizens and therefore for all citizens and all businesses. We will focus on small and medium-sized enterprises and on competitiveness in general terms. The issue fundamental of the single market, of the internal market is to avoid fragmentation: there have been obstacles for years and years. There is the Monti report from 2010. I have taken many ideas from it, it is a wonderful report they didn't want to implement some of these recommendations so today we have to really push because there is a disconnect."