EU to attend the G8 summit in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland on 17-18 June 2013

Brussels, 15-6-2013 — /europawire.eu/ —  This year’s G8 summit will take place in Lough Erne in Northern Ireland and will be chaired by UK Prime Minister David Cameron. The European Union is a full member of the G8 and is represented by European Commission President Barroso and European Council President Van Rompuy.

In Lough Erne the European Union will be fully engaged to find common solutions to the pressing challenges on the agenda, ranging from measures to support the global economy and create jobs, from promoting greater transparency in taxation to foreign and security issues like the fight against terrorism and achieving a political solution to the appalling crisis in Syria. Promoting fairness and sustainable growth, jobs and development will be at the heart of the EU’s ambition for this G8 summit under UK with a special focus on the three T’s: trade, tax and transparency.

President José Manuel Barroso said: “The European Union is coming to this G8 summit to promote global fairness: through further opening of international trade as a vital engine for growth, jobs and development; by stepping up the global fight against tax evasion and avoidance, through automatic exchange of information; and through stronger transparency on revenue streams from extractive industries and forestry, on land governance and on government data. I am confident that this summit under UK presidency will provide the momentum to move forward on these important priorities.”

As President Van Rompuy stated: “This G8 summit comes at a time with important economic and political challenges for the G8 and the rest of the world. The promotion of growth and jobs is the top priority for the G8. In the EU, financial stability has been restored and the existential threat to the euro area is over. We are now focusing our efforts to ensure more growth and to fight unemployment, especially among the youth. At the same time, the European Union is fully committed to help solving the most urgent problems in foreign policy, notably Syria.”

The G8 summit will start with a discussion of the global economy including trade, where European Commission President Barroso and European Council President Van Rompuy will explain the state of play of the EU’s response to the economic crisis, and the progress achieved in the euro zone since the Camp David summit in 2012.

The foreign policy discussion will focus on the most pressing challenges, particularly Syria, the Middle East Peace Process, North Korea and Afghanistan. The EU will set out its positions and actions aimed at finding solutions.

On the trade, tax and transparency – the so-called “3 Ts agenda” put forward by the G8 UK Presidency, the EU will underline the importance to promote free, fair and open trade as an engine for growth and job creation, as reaffirmed in the European Council meeting of 8 February this year. They will also call for a reinforced global effort in the fight against tax evasion and fraud building on the new political momentum in Europe, as expressed at the European Council meeting of 22 May, and worldwide.

For more information:

President Barroso’s G8 website:

http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/president/g20/index_en.htm

President Van Rompuy’s G8 website:

http://www.european-council.europa.eu/the-president/summits-with-third-countries?lang=en

UK Government G8 website: https://www.gov.uk/g8

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BarrosoEU and http://www.twitter.com/euHvr

Video material:

http://ec.europa.eu/avservices/ebs/schedule.cfm and http://tvnewsroom.consilium.europa.eu/

Press material:

MEMO/13/551 The G8 summit in Lough Erne (UK) on 17-18 June 2013: the European Union’s role and actions

MEMO/13/548 Promoting global fairness through trade, taxation and transparency, says President Barroso ahead of G8 Summit