EU industrial policy: lessons from the experience of the 1960s to the 1990s

The concept of European industrial policy has never been inserted as such in the treaties but has been the subject of debates since the1960s. Beyond the endless quarrels over a controversial and changing concept emerged a line of force largely imposed by the facts. This chapter shows that oppose market logic and intervention in favour of industry would be contrary to the approach that has been followed. It is the framework of the internal market that determines the possibility of any action in support of European industry. The deepening of the in-ternal market was therefore the prerequisite for any industrial policy, just as several industrial policy actions has made the completion of the internal market possible. Similarly, if the trend has been to increase the number of tools and environmental actions targeted at companies, the central position of these companies has been at the heart of the Com-mission's strategy since the 1960s, and the years 1980-90 consolidated this development. While industrial policy actions of a clearly sectoral nature have lost their importance, the Commission's consideration of the hierarchy of sectors and technologies diminishes the significance of this observation. The notion of Community interest put forward in the 1990s seeks to reintroduce this political dimension. The recent rebirth of a more active industrial policy is in line with these considerations.