” “The yearly report of the EU Commission on the progress made in the area of economic reforms also shows some "key conclusions" that the Executive will draw to the attention of the heads of state and government at the Spring summit. First and foremost, it highlights the "good progress made in the furtherance of research and innovation, improvement in the regulatory framework and in the context in which companies work". The experts of Barroso’s Commission also found that "important steps forward" have been made in the austerity of the public budgets and "in coping with the expected rise in the cost of pensions and healthcare". The medium-long term financial recovery "remains a relevant challenge". The Executive complains instead that competition is poor "in many markets, especially those of network services, including energy"; a factor, this one, that "slows down Europe". Finally, new solutions adopted by many countries for flexibility also look rosy: "Employment is increasing and unemployment is decreasing. The increasing consensus on a flexible-security (flexicurity) approach to the reform of the labour market is a positive development. But it still has to be fully put into practice".” “
