On 4 April, EBC Secretary General Eugenio Quintieri intervened at the High Level Forum on Construction, a tripartite group of the Construction 2020 initiative, consisting of the European Commission, Member States and sectorial representatives.
On the occasion, Mr. Quintieri praised the results of the current Construction 2020 framework but expressed the need to have a stronger initiative in the future. In particular, he welcomed a possible new Commission initiative on the built environment for people and planet that should be based on the following principles:
- A specific targeted approach on construction because the sector is at the crossroads of different value chains and its unique nature requires a unique approach
- An adaptable policy framework to address the evolving construction ecosystem and the transformation of the sector
- A holistic approach towards policy making in order to implement coherent and balanced policies and legislation for the built environment
- A strong partnership between the European institution and construction stakeholders to steer the transformation of the sector with the most adequate policies and tools
By applying these principles, the construction sector will obtain a higher political visibility, more in line with the importance of its economic relevance for the EU and thus better reflected in the European political and financial framework. Moreover, this strengthened framework will create a better coordination between public institutions and private stakeholders that will allow to jointly develop priorities, strategies and targeted actions in order to address our current challenges. Finally, this would ensure an extended uptake of EU policy initiatives at the national, regional and local levels.
Eugenio Quintieri stated: “The construction sector is crucial for the European Union’s ambition towards reaching economic, social, environmental and energy targets. In view of the European elections, this should be the main goal of public and private actors of the construction sector: convince the renewed European institutions that by improving the way we build, we will improve the life of European citizens and help addressing the current challenges of the European Union”
