POLITICAL GUIDELINES FOR THE NEXT EUROPEAN

EUROPE’S CHOICE

POLITICAL GUIDELINES

FOR THE NEXT EUROPEAN COMMISSION

2024−2029

Ursula von der Leyen

Candidate for the European Commission President

Strasbourg

18 July 2024

Strasbourg

18 July 2024

EUROPE’S CHOICE

POLITICAL GUIDELINES

FOR THE NEXT EUROPEAN COMMISSION

2024

−2029

Ursula von der Leyen

Candidate for the European Commission President

EUROPE’S CHOICE

Campaigning across Europe ahead of this year’s European elections was a reminder

of what makes our Union what it is. Almost 500 million people with such disparate

cultures, complex histories and differing perspectives all coming together at the same

time to articulate their wish for an entire Union of 27 countries. In casting their vote

they also help to build a shared European identity – all of this bound together by our

rich and varied cultural tapestry. This is Europe’s greatest strength. It makes Europe

more than a construct or a project. Europe is our home: unique in design and

united in diversity.

From the record number of first-time voters to those who have voted in every

European election, people expressed hopes and aspirations for a healthier and more

prosperous future. But they also pointed to the fact that we are in an era of anxiety

and uncertainty. Europeans have real doubts and concerns about the instabilities and

insecurities we face – from the cost of living, housing and doing business to the way

issues such as migration are handled. From our security at home to the wars in

Ukraine and the Middle East. They also worry that Europe is often not fast enough;

that it can be either too distant or too burdensome.

All of these expectations and concerns are real, legitimate and must be responded to.

For that reason, I believe it is essential that the democratic centre in Europe

holds. But if that centre is to hold it must live up to the scale of the concerns and the

challenges that people face in their lives. Failure to do so would fuel resentment and

polarisation and leave a fertile ground for those who peddle simplistic solutions but

in reality want to destabilise our societies.

This is the backdrop to what is an era of profound change – for our society and our

security, our planet and our economy. The speed of change can be destabilising and,

for some, can lead to a sense of loss for the world as it used to be and a worry for the

world as it will be.

All of this – coupled with the fallout from elections and events in a more contested

world – has created a turbulent and potentially seismic period for Europe. The risks

are real, the responsibilities serious.

Europe now faces a clear choice.

A choice to either face up to the uncertain world around us alone. Or to unite our

societies and unite around our values.

A choice to be dependent, to let the divisions weaken us. Or to be bold in our

ambition and sovereign in our action, working with our partners around the world.

A choice to ignore new realities or the speed of change. Or to be clear-eyed about the

world and threats around us as they really are.

A choice to let the extremists and appeasers prevail. Or to ensure our democratic

forces stay strong.

My view is that our era’s greatest challenges – from security to climate change to

competitiveness - can only be solved through joint action. Our threats are too

great to tackle individually. Our opportunities too big to grasp alone.

Against this backdrop, I believe Europe must choose its best option: Union.

This is based on a deep conviction that it is only Europe that can live up to our

generational challenges in this unstable world – whether supporting Ukraine for as

long as it takes, protecting our planet, ensuring social fairness, defending

democracy, supporting livelihoods, industries and farmers, or leading on the tech

breakthroughs that will shape the world for the rest of this century.

In the last five years, Europe has shown what it can achieve when it does it

together. When it is fast and uses its size and power – as we did when securing

vaccines for every Member State at the same time. When it is bold and ambitious –

as we were with on the twin green and digital transitions and our recovery plan,

NextGenerationEU. When it is united – as we have been in support of Ukraine,

freedom and democracy at the darkest and most difficult of times.

It is time for Europe to step up collectively once again.

This is a shared responsibility for all European voters, but also for all those flying the

European flag, from Kyiv to Chisinau, Tbilisi and across the Western Balkans – as

well as those calling for a European future in the streets of towns and cities across

our Union and continent. We must prepare for that future – by supporting all

candidates in their merits-based journey to our Union, and by preparing our Union

for the future with essential reforms.

The Union that we choose cannot be boiled down to a binary question of more or less

Europe. For these times, we need a Union that is faster and simpler, more focused

and more united, more supportive of people and companies. We need a Union

that acts where it has added value and where we all mobilise together with a clear

goal and a collective mission – EU institutions, national and regional governments,

private sector, social partners, citizens and civil society.

We have achieved a lot together in the last five years, from the European Green Deal

to NextGenerationEU, the Pact on Migration and Asylum and the implementation of

the European Pillar of Social Rights. We must and will stay the course on all of

our goals, including those set out in the European Green Deal.

Our focus must now be on implementing what we have agreed, working closely with

all stakeholders and focusing on our big challenges. This is why I want to define a set

of focused and collective objectives for 2030 and beyond, with clear targets and

outcomes in these priority areas.

Defence and security. Sustainable prosperity and competitiveness. Democracy and

social fairness. Leading in the world and delivering in Europe.

The Political Guidelines are our plan for European strength and unity. The

priorities set out here draw on my consultations and on the common ideas discussed

with the democratic forces in the European Parliament, and also on the European

Council’s Strategic Agenda for 2024-2029. They are not an exhaustive work

programme but aim to steer our common work.

The next five years will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades.

It will decide whether we shape our own future or let it be shaped by events or by

others.

In a world of adversity and uncertainty, I believe Europe must choose to stick

together and dare to think and act big. To live up to the legacy of our past, to deliver

for the present, and to prepare a stronger Union for the future.

This is the driving force behind these guidelines and all that I want to work on with

the European Parliament and the Member States in the next five years.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

A new plan for Europe’s sustainable

prosperity and competitiveness

Europe has always been a continent of

industry, enterprise and innovation –

reinventing itself through industrial and tech

revolutions, global competition and changing

societies.

This strength is in large part down to our

unique social market economy, which gives

Europe many advantages over competitors.

But there are still too many structural brakes

on our competitiveness. Our companies

operate in a turbulent world, with more

unfair competition, higher energy prices,

skills and labour shortages and difficulties in

accessing the capital they need.

We have seen first-hand the dangers of

dependencies or fraying supply chains – from

medical products in the pandemic to Putin’s

energy blackmail or China’s monopoly on

raw materials essential for batteries or chips.

The world is in a race that will dictate who

will be the first to climate neutrality and first

to develop the technologies that will shape

the global economy for decades to come.

Europe cannot afford to fall behind and lose

its competitive edge in this race, nor can it

leave any strategic vulnerabilities exposed.

We have a lot to build on – from the massive

investment in clean and digital tech in

NextGenerationEU to the approach on

sovereignty agreed on by Leaders in

Versailles.

We have a lot of assets that give us a

competitive edge, from world-class

researchers and universities, to thriving small

businesses and a stable environment based on

the rule of law and a level playing field.

But given the scale of the challenges and

opportunities, we now need to go much faster

and further to ensure competitiveness,

prosperity and fairness. I will also draw on

the upcoming report by Mario Draghi on

competitiveness for this work.

We need a new European Prosperity

Plan to:

 Make business easier and deepen

our Single Market;

 Build a Clean Industrial Deal to

decarbonise and bring down

energy prices;

 Put research and innovation at the

heart of our economy;

 Boost productivity with digital

tech diffusion;

 Invest massively in our

sustainable competitiveness;

 Tackle the skills and labour gap.

Making business easier

Europe’s Single Market is key to our

competitiveness. It allows goods, services,

money and people to move freely, opening

up markets and making life easier for people,

companies and investors.

But it could do so much more. We need a

new momentum to complete the Single

Market in sectors like services, energy,

defence, finance, electronic communications

and digital. This will allow our companies –

especially our small and medium-sized

enterprises (SMEs) – to scale up and make

the most of the market.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

I believe we need a new approach to

competition policy, better geared to our

common goals and more supportive of

companies scaling up in global markets -

while always ensuring a level playing field.

This should be reflected in the way we assess

mergers so that innovation and resilience are

fully taken into account.

We will ensure competition policy keeps

pace with evolving global markets and

prevents market concentration from raising

prices or lowering the quality of goods or

services for consumers.

The 24 million European SMEs create

quality jobs anchored in local communities.

But they, along with larger companies, still

face too many complexities.

We need to make business easier and

faster in Europe.

I will make speed, coherence and

simplification key political priorities in

everything we do.

Each Commissioner will be tasked with

focusing on reducing administrative burdens

and simplifying implementation: less red tape

and reporting, more trust, better enforcement,

faster permitting.

They will hold regular dialogues on

implementation with stakeholders to discuss

how best to align implementation with

realities on the ground.

They will work with a Vice-President for

Implementation, Simplification and

Interinstitutional Relations to stress-test the

entire EU acquis.

On this basis, we will make proposals to

simplify, consolidate and codify legislation

to eliminate any overlaps and contradictions

while maintaining high standards.

We will also address the patchwork of

national regulations that makes doing

business in different EU countries more

complicated. We will make it easier for

innovators to succeed by reducing the costs

of failure.

To support this, I will propose a new EU-

wide legal status to help innovative

companies grow. This will take the form of

a so-called 28

regime to allow companies to

benefit from a simpler, harmonised set of

rules in certain areas.

We also need to better support firms whose

size and financing capacity cannot be

compared to large corporations. They are

often the target of killer acquisitions from

foreign companies seeking to eliminate them

as a possible source of future competition.

We will introduce a new category of small

midcaps and assess where existing

regulation applying to large companies is too

burdensome, disproportionate or a hindrance

to their competitive development.

Future legislation must also be simplified and

designed with small businesses in mind and

in a spirit of subsidiarity. This will notably be

done though a new SME and

competitiveness check to help avoid

unnecessary administrative burdens,

maintaining high standards.

But better lawmaking has to be a joint task –

with all institutions involved and all of the

legislative process covered – from proposal

to amendments to adoption.

In this spirit I will propose to renew

Interinstitutional agreement on

simplification and better law making so

that each institution assesses the impact and

cost of its amendments in the same way.

To ensure that we collectively follow up on

enforcement and implementation, I will

also ask each Commissioner to prepare an

annual progress report for their respective

European Parliament Committee and Council

formation.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

A Clean Industrial Deal

We have made historic progress in setting out

our climate ambitions and have shown that

we can successfully reduce our emissions

while growing our economy.

We must and will stay the course on the

goals set out in the European Green Deal.

The climate crisis is accelerating at pace.

And there is an equally urgent need to

decarbonise and industrialise our economy at

the same time.

We must focus on implementing the

existing legal framework for 2030 – in the

simplest, fairest and most cost-efficient way.

We need a new Clean Industrial Deal for

competitive industries and quality jobs in the

first 100 days of the mandate.

Our full focus will be on supporting and

creating the right conditions for

companies to reach our common goals. This

means simplifying, investing and ensuring

access to cheap, sustainable and secure

energy supplies and raw materials.

This will prepare the way towards the 90%

emission-reduction target for 2040 which

we will propose to enshrine in our European

Climate Law. At every step, we will work in

partnership with industry, social partners and

all stakeholders.

We will put forward an Industrial

Decarbonisation Accelerator Act to support

industries and companies through the

transition.

This will channel investment in infrastructure

and industry, in particular for energy

intensive sectors. It will support European

lead markets for the development, production

and diffusion in industry of clean tech. It will

also help to speed up related planning,

tendering and permitting processes.

We must bring down energy bills for

companies and households.

Thanks to European measures, renewables

have reached a record high, accounting for

50% of EU electricity power generation over

the last year. Dependence on Russian fossil

gas has been substantially reduced and

energy savings have brought down overall

consumption.

However, we still face many challenges. Our

energy market must work better to bring

prices down and ensure consumers benefit

from the lower production costs of clean

energy.

We will continue to bring down energy

prices by moving further away from fossil

fuels, reinforcing joint procurement for fuels,

and developing the governance needed for a

true Energy Union.

We will scale-up and prioritise investment in

clean energy infrastructure and technologies.

This will include renewables and low-carbon

technologies, grid infrastructure, storage

capacity and transport infrastructure for

captured CO2. We will also invest in energy-

efficiency measures, the digitalisation of our

energy system and the deployment of a

hydrogen network.

Beyond this, we must use the power and size

of our market to secure supplies. This is why

I will propose to activate and extend our

aggregate demand mechanism to go

beyond gas and include hydrogen and critical

raw materials.

We will work on new Clean Trade and

Investment Partnerships to help secure

supply of raw materials, clean energy and

clean tech from across the world.

By leading by example at home, I want

Europe to remain a leader in international

climate negotiations, building on recent EU

initiatives on global issues such as methane,

carbon pricing and global targets for

renewables and energy efficiency.

We will set out our global climate and

energy vision ahead of COP30 in Brazil in

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

2025. We will also step up our green

diplomacy and engage more with non-EU

countries on external aspects of our policies.

To achieve our climate objectives, we also

need to make it easier for people to shift to

more sustainable options. This is notably the

case with mobility. Cross-border train travel

is still too difficult for many citizens. People

should be able to use open booking systems

to purchase trans-European journeys with

several providers, without losing their right

to reimbursement or compensatory travel.

To this end we will propose a Single Digital

Booking and Ticketing Regulation, to

ensure that Europeans can buy one single

ticket on one single platform and get

passengers’ rights for their whole trip.

Reaching climate neutrality by 2050 will

require a wide range of innovative

technologies, in areas from mobility to

energy. For instance, the 2035 climate

neutrality target for cars creates predictability

for investors and manufacturers. Getting

there will require a technology-neutral

approach, in which e-fuels have a role to play

through a targeted amendment of the

regulation as part of the foreseen review.

A more circular and resilient

economy

Working to decarbonise our economy will be

part of our continued shift to a more

sustainable pattern of production and

consumption, retaining the value of resources

in our economy for longer.

This will be the purpose of a new Circular

Economy Act, helping to create market

demand for secondary materials and a single

market for waste, notably in relation to

critical raw materials.

We will put forward a new chemicals

industry package, aiming to simplify

REACH and provide clarity on “forever

chemicals”, or PFAS.

We must make our economy more resilient

and less dependent.

This is notably important in the health and

pharmaceutical sector. The EU has been

confronted with severe shortages of medical

devices and medicines, with antibiotics,

insulin, painkillers and other products

becoming particularly difficult to obtain.

To remedy this, we will propose a Critical

Medicines Act to reduce dependencies

relating to critical medicines and ingredients,

particularly for products where there are only

a few supplying manufacturers or countries.

This will be part of our work to complete the

European Health Union with diversified

supply chains, access to the most advanced

treatments, more resilient health systems and

strategic inventories of key medicines. We

must continue our work on anti-microbial

resistance.

We will also step up our work on preventive

health, in particular for mental health,

including at work, and cardiovascular

diseases, as well as on treatments for

degenerative illnesses and research on

autism. This will build on the successful

model of the Beating Cancer Plan.

We must also do more to protect the security

of our health systems, which are increasingly

the target of cyber and ransomware attacks.

To improve threat detection, preparedness

and crisis response, I will propose a

European action plan on the cybersecurity

of hospitals and healthcare providers in

the first 100 days of the mandate.

Boosting productivity with

digital tech diffusion

Europe’s competitiveness is hamstrung by its

lower productivity compared to its direct

global competitors. Central to this is the

insufficient diffusion of digital technologies,

impacting our ability to use tech to develop

new services and business models.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

We will start by focusing on the

implementation and enforcement of the

digital laws adopted during the last mandate.

Tech giants must assume responsibility for

their enormous systemic power in our society

and economy. We have begun the active

enforcement of the Digital Services Act and

the Digital Markets Act. We will ramp up

and intensify our enforcement in the

coming mandate.

We will support this by tackling challenges

with e-commerce platforms to ensure

consumers and businesses benefit from a

level playing field based on effective

customs, tax and safety controls and

sustainability standards.

Reaching our digital targets and building a

true digital single market would be a

gamechanger for our productivity and

competitiveness.

We will step up our investment in the next

wave of frontier technologies, in particular

supercomputing, semiconductors, the Internet

of Things, genomics, quantum computing,

space tech and beyond.

Through our Artificial Intelligence (AI),

Europe is already leading the way on making

AI safer and more trustworthy, and on

tackling the risks stemming from its misuse.

We must now focus our efforts on becoming

a global leader in AI innovation.

In the first 100 days, we will ensure access to

new, tailored supercomputing capacity for AI

start-ups and industry through an AI

Factories initiative.

We will also develop with Member States,

industry and civil society an Apply AI

Strategy to boost new industrial uses of AI

and to improve the delivery of a variety of

public services, such as healthcare.

In this spirit, I will propose to set up a

European AI Research Council where we

can pool all of our resources, similar to the

approach taken with CERN.

To support the development of AI and other

frontier technologies, Europe needs to

exploit the untapped potential of data.

Access to data is not only a major driver for

competitiveness, accounting for almost 4%

of EU GDP, but also essential for

productivity and societal innovations, from

personalised medicine to energy savings.

However, too many companies in Europe

struggle to get access to the data they need –

while large foreign tech companies use

European data to fuel their business.

While ensuring high standards of data

protection, we will support companies by

improving open access to data, notably to

support SMEs to fulfil reporting obligations.

Europe needs a data revolution.

This is why we will put forward a European

Data Union Strategy. This will draw on

existing data rules to ensure a simplified,

clear and coherent legal framework for

businesses and administrations to share data

seamlessly and at scale, while respecting

high privacy and security standards.

Putting research and innovation

at the heart of our economy

Europe’s competitiveness – and its position

in the race to a clean and digital economy –

will depend on starting a new age of

invention and ingenuity. This requires

putting research and innovation, science and

technology, at the centre of our economy.

We will increase our research spending to

focus more on strategic priorities, on

groundbreaking fundamental research and

disruptive innovation, and on scientific

excellence.

To do this, we will expand the European

Research Council and the European

Innovation Council.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Europe must also be at the cutting edge

between emerging science, tech and industry,

the nexus that will make this tech revolution

faster and more transformative.

I want Europe to make the most of the

biotech revolution. Biotechnologies,

supported by AI and digital tools, can help

modernise entire parts of our economy, from

farming and forestry, to energy and health.

In order to make it easier to bring biotech

from the laboratory to factory and then onto

the market we will propose a new European

Biotech Act in 2025.

This will be part of a broader Strategy for

European Life Sciences to look at how we

can support our green and digital transitions

and develop high-value technologies.

To lead on innovation, we need to create the

conditions for researchers to thrive. This

means providing the infrastructure and

innovative laboratories they need to test and

develop ideas through new public-private

partnerships, such as joint undertakings.

It also means attracting new talents and

retaining the best and brightest minds here in

Europe. To do this, I want to strengthen the

collaboration between research departments,

higher education and business – notably by

strengthening our University Alliances.

Turbo charging investment

This will be an investment Commission.

We must unlock the financing needed for the

green, digital and social transition. We will

maximise public investment and leverage and

de-risk private capital – working closely with

the European Investment Bank.

This investment cannot be financed through

the public purse alone. Completing the

Capital Markets Union could attract an extra

EUR 470 billion of investment per year.

We need to be more ambitious in tackling the

lack of private capital and our still too

shallow markets.

Innovative European companies and start-ups

should not be forced to look at the United

States, Asia or other markets to finance their

expansion. They should be able find what

they need to grow here in Europe too.

This is why we will put forward risk-

absorbing measures to make it easier for

commercial banks, investors and venture

capital to finance fast-growing companies.

To unlock capital and ensure a level playing

field, we will review our regulatory

framework to address barriers that restrict the

amount of European capital available to

finance innovation.

We will tackle the fragmentation of our

financial markets which sees EUR 300

billion of European families’ savings

transferred to foreign markets every year.

To do this, we will develop the proposal in

the Enrico Letta report and propose a

European Savings and Investments Union,

including banking and capital markets. This

will help leverage the enormous wealth of

private savings in Europe to invest in

innovation and the clean and digital

transitions.

Beyond private savings in Europe, our

current financial instruments in the capital

market are important to attract savings from

around the world as the EU name is a very

safe asset with attractive yields.

We must also make better use of public

procurement – which accounts for 14% of

EU GDP.

A 1% efficiency gain in public procurement

could save EUR 20 billion a year. And it is

one of the main levers available to develop

innovative goods and services and create lead

markets in clean and strategic technologies.

I will propose a revision of the Public

Procurement Directive. This will enable

preference to be given to European products

in public procurement for certain strategic

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

sectors. It will help ensure EU added value

for our citizens, along with security of supply

for vital technologies, products and services.

It will also modernise and simplify our public

procurement rules, in particular with EU

start-ups and innovators in mind.

When it comes to public financing and

investment, the first priority will be ensuring

the use of the resources available via

NextGenerationEU and the current budget

Looking ahead, the Clean Industrial Deal

must enable us to invest more together in

clean and strategic technologies and in

energy intensive industries. The future of the

clean and cutting-edge tech industry must be

made in Europe.

This is why I will put forward a new

European Competitiveness Fund as part of

our proposal for a new and reinforced budget

in the next multiannual financial framework.

This investment capacity will invest in

strategic technologies – from AI to space,

clean tech to biotech - to ensure that we

develop strategic technologies and

manufacture them here in Europe. And it will

ensure that we use the power of our budget to

leverage and de-risk private investment in

our common goals.

The European Competitiveness Fund will

support Important Projects of Common

Interest (IPCEIs) so that Europe can use its

collective strength to invest together in

ambitious common projects – as has already

been done on a smaller scale with batteries,

hydrogen and microelectronics.

I will make IPCEIs simpler and faster to

get financed and off the ground. The first

new set of common projects will be proposed

in early 2025.

Tackling the skills and labour

gaps

Europe needs a radical step change in

ambition and action – for all skill levels and

for all types of training and education. This is

as important for people’s careers and

prospects as it is for our competitiveness.

To do so, we will establish a Union of Skills

– focusing on investment, adult and lifelong

learning, skill retention and the recognition

of different types of training to enable people

to work across our Union.

Central to this will be embedding lifelong

learning into education and careers and

supporting the training and the career

prospects of teachers.

We will focus on improving basic skills and

propose a STEM Education Strategic Plan.

This will aim to address the worrying decline

in performance and the lack of qualified

teachers in areas linked to science,

technology, engineering and maths. It should

also bring more girls and women into STEM

education and careers.

It is also important to give vocational

education and training (VET) the prominence

it deserves. It prepares people for work and

gives them the skills that companies are

looking for. This is why I will propose a

European Strategy for Vocational

Education and Training, notably to boost

the number of people with a secondary VET

degree.

In a fast-moving economy we need to be

more responsive to the needs of our

companies. We will boost and refocus skills

funding in the EU budget to ensure it is

better linked to labour markets and more

focused on sectors crucial for the twin

transitions.

We need to make sure that we benefit from

all high-quality skills irrespective of where

and how they were acquired. This is why we

will continue to work towards a European

Degree and will put forward a Skills

Portability Initiative to ensure a skill

acquired in one country is recognised in

another.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

A new era for European Defence and

Security

‘World peace cannot be safeguarded without

the making of creative efforts proportionate

to the dangers which threaten it.’

The first line of the Schuman Declaration

encapsulates the story of Europe. It speaks to

our past – riven by war, division and some of

the worst conflicts the world has ever seen.

Peace in Europe has never been a given but

any illusions were shattered by Putin’s war of

aggression in Ukraine.

The sickening and remorseless attacks on

children’s hospitals, energy infrastructure

and other civilian targets show the lengths

that Putin’s Russia will go to.

Ukraine is fighting for Europe’s freedom,

democracy and values. Our collective resolve

must be as strong as the challenge is great.

The best investment in European security

is investing in the security of Ukraine.

Europe’s financial, political and military

support must be sustained for as long as it

takes.

We will use all the instruments at our

disposal, including through the European

Peace Facility, working on everything from

immediate needs to future reconstruction

efforts through the Ukraine Facility.

If the last few years have been a sharp

reminder about how fragile peace is, they

have also been a wake up call for Europe to

give itself the means to defend and protect

itself and to deter potential adversaries. This

is all the more acute as we look towards a

more fractured and uncertain world in which

Europe can take nothing for granted.

We will look at all of our policies through a

security lens. We will plan for scenarios that

we hope will never come to pass, but we

cannot take the risk of being underprepared

or over reliant.

Bringing the European Defence

Union to life

The last several years have exposed the

chronic under investment and a lack of

efficient spending in our military capabilities.

To put this into perspective, combined EU

spending on defence from 1999 to 2021

increased by 20%. In that time, Russia’s

defence spending increased by almost 300%

and China's by almost 600%. At the same

time, our spending is too disjointed, disparate

and not European enough. We must change

this.

Our work in the next five years will be

focused on building a true European

Defence Union.

Member States will always retain

responsibility for their own troops, from

doctrine to deployment, but there is a lot

Europe can do to support and coordinate

efforts to strengthen the defence industrial

base, innovation and the Single Market.

To help coordinate this work at the European

level, I will appoint a Commissioner for

Defence, who will work closely with the next

High Representative /Vice-President in

accordance with the Treaty.

To frame the new approach and to identify

our investment needs we will jointly present

a White Paper on the Future of European

Defence in the first 100 days of the mandate.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Central to this work will be strengthening the

EU-NATO partnership. We will continue to

extend our cooperation with NATO to cover

all threats, including new dangers linked to

cyber, hybrid or space, and to strengthen our

transatlantic partnership.

In an era of rearmament, the first priority is

to significantly increase investment.

While there has been progress, defence

budgets are still predominantly spent on a

national basis. A fraction of equipment

spending in Europe is devoted to EU joint

procurement. And the vast majority of

defence acquisitions by Member States are

still made from outside Europe.

We need to spend more, spend better,

spend together.

The first task is the urgent need to rebuild,

replenish and transform national armed

forces – as defined by Member States.

We will build up the European Defence

Fund, investing in high-end defence

capabilities in critical areas such as naval,

ground, air combat, space-based early

warning and cyber.

The second task is to invest more in our

defence industry. We will reinforce the

European Defence Industry Programme to

incentivise common procurement to address

the EU's most critical capability gaps.

We will create a true Single Market for

Defence products and services, enhancing

production capacity and fostering joint

procurement.

The third task is to pool our resources and

counter our common threats through flagship

European Defence Union projects. These

should focus on our biggest common and

cross-border threats.

Working with Member States and in close

coordination with NATO, we will propose a

number of Defence Projects of Common

European Interest starting with a European

Air Shield and cyber defence.

We will ensure that these major projects are

open to all and we will use all of the tools at

our disposal – both regulatory and financial –

to ensure they are designed, built and

deployed on European soil as quickly as

possible.

We need to match our ambitions with

investment.

This starts with incentivising private defence

investment. I will work with the European

Investment Bank so it can help finance and

de-risk common defence projects and

defence innovation.

This requires European investment in the

next multiannual financial framework. But

we will also make proposals for urgent

defence investment needs.

A Preparedness Union

Beyond building up our capabilities, Europe

also needs new ambition on crisis and

security preparedness.

We will work on a Preparedness Union

Strategy, inspired by the report on EU civil

and military preparedness to be presented by

former Finnish President Sauli Niinistö later

this year.

As part of this, we will focus on further

strengthening our cyber defence

capabilities, coordinating national cyber

efforts and securing our critical

infrastructures – notably by developing a

trusted European cyber-defence industry.

Europe also needs a common approach to

preventing and preparing other new threats,

in particular those linked to chemical,

biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN)

security.

Building on the work of the Health

Emergency Preparedness and Response

Authority, we will present a new strategy to

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

support medical countermeasures against

public health threats, such as those linked

to CBRN security, including joint

procurement and stockpiling.

We must also work on integrated

deterrence. With this in mind, we will

strengthen our strategic approach to

sanctions to ensure that we can react flexibly

to new threats. This will look at how our

sanctions framework against cyberattacks

can be expanded and how a new sanctions

regime against hybrid attacks on the EU and

its Member States could work.

A safer and more secure Europe

The most basic of rights is the right to feel

safe – wherever we are and whatever time of

day it is. But organised crime in Europe is on

the rise. This damages lives, businesses, and

entire economies, while lining the pockets of

criminals and gangs.

There can be no hiding place for organised

crime in Europe – either offline or online.

I will propose a new European Internal

Security Strategy. This will help ensure that

security is integrated in EU legislation and

policies by-design.

We need to provide law enforcement with

adequate and up-to-date tools for lawful

access to digital information, while

safeguarding fundamental rights.

Most criminal groups are active in more than

three EU countries, navigating constantly

between the physical and digital worlds. We

will focus on dismantling high-risk criminal

networks and their ringleaders, including by

revising the current rules on organised crime.

I will propose to make Europol a truly

operational police agency and more than

double its staff over time. This should come

with a strengthened oversight and mandate.

We must bolster its capacity to support

national law enforcement agencies.

We must also ensure these criminals are

brought to justice. Strengthening the

European Arrest Warrant will allow

judicial authorities the opportunity to work

more closely to help make this happen.

We must also reflect on areas in which the

European Public Prosecutors’ Office will

need more powers to look at cross-border

serious crime, in particular corruption that

impacts Union funds and cannot be handled

alone by Member States.

This tougher approach on crime will be

particularly important when it comes to the

rise of drug trafficking in Europe, which

remains a source of personal tragedy and of

funding for other criminal activities.

We will put forward a new European action

plan against drug trafficking, working with

partners to close routes and business models.

This will support a wider EU Port Strategy

focusing on security, competitiveness and

economic independence, and building on the

work of the European Ports Alliance.

The recent spike in terrorist attacks is also a

reminder that the threat of organised

networks – or the lone wolves they inspire -

has not gone away.

It is time for a new Counter-Terrorism

Agenda to address new and emerging

threats, such as the online dimension or the

evolving global security landscape, and to

take a stronger approach to terrorist financing

and anti-radicalisation.

Finally, our united approach to security

should be centred around a new European

Critical Communication System to be used

by public authorities in charge of security

and safety. This will be part of our work to

improve daily operational cooperation in the

fight against terrorism and crime and in

saving lives in emergency situations.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Stronger common borders

Europe’s coastlines and common borders

help millions of people every day with

business, work, studies and tourism. We need

to make our borders more secure and more

fluid. People want to feel safe without

waiting too long.

We will make the EU the most advanced

travel destination in the world, with a fully

functional European digital border

management.

However, we also need to make our borders

more secure to prevent irregular border

crossings and to protect the EU against the

rise of hybrid and other security threats.

In recent years, Europe has been called on to

respond to pressures at its borders, from

Lampedusa to Poland’s border with Belarus,

from the borders of the Baltic states and

Finland to the Canary Islands, Cyprus and

beyond.

On every occasion we have been able to

respond, and on every occasion we have

strengthened our borders. But we need a

stronger and more agile approach.

We will work on the basis of an integrated

border management approach. We will

strengthen Frontex, notably to equip it with

state-of-the art technology for surveillance

and situational awareness, along with its own

equipment and personnel to ensure it can

protect our borders in all circumstances with

strong governance and the full respect of

fundamental rights.

To make this happen, I will propose to triple

the number of European Border and

Coast Guards to 30 000.

We will show no tolerance for those who

threaten the security of our borders and our

citizens with hybrid attacks. Hostile actors

who push people across the EU’s external

borders for political purposes should be

recognised as a threat to our security and

should be sanctioned.

We will also do more to work with non-EU

countries on border security, notably by

developing an EU Visa Policy Strategy to

better secure borders and manage migration.

Finally, it is of paramount importance for

border security to ensure a complete and

fully functioning Schengen area of free

movement. This will enable us to remove the

remaining internal border controls.

Bulgaria and Romania have demonstrated

their capacity in relation to border

management and returns. They are ready and

should benefit fully from the Schengen area.

Standing fair and firm on

migration

Migration is a European challenge that must

be met with a European solution. This is why

it was so important that we deliver on the

Pact on Migration and Asylum.

The Pact will help us to protect people, to

secure our borders, to ensure fair and

efficient procedures and to manage migration

in an orderly way with solidarity at its heart.

Our joint focus will be on implementing all

parts of the Pact, and we will step up

support for Member States to ensure they

have the expertise, operational and financial

capacity they need to turn legal commitments

into practice, including through investment in

our next long-term budget.

The implementation of the Pact is a dynamic,

not a one-off, process. We need a European

Migration and Asylum Strategy to frame

our forward-looking vision and adapt to

future challenges.

We will put forward a new common

approach on returns, with a new legislative

framework to speed up and simplify the

process, ensure that returns take place in a

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

dignified manner, digitalise case

management and ensure that return decisions

are mutually recognised across Europe.

We will continue developing strategic

relations on migration and security with

non-EU countries, especially countries of

origin and transit.

As part of a new Pact for the

Mediterranean, we will develop our

existing strategic partnerships and work

towards new ones with clear responsibilities

and deliverables. We will work in areas of

shared interest, from investment in education,

infrastructure, and the wider economy to

talent partnerships and legal pathways. We

will step up our work on returns, preventing

illegal migration and fighting human

smuggling. I will ensure increased

transparency towards the European

Parliament on such agreements.

We will also further reflect on new ways to

counter irregular migration, while respecting

international law and ensuring sustainable

and fair solutions for the migrants

themselves.

Europe has always fulfilled its international

obligations in the past – and it always will.

We will always respect human rights and

will ensure that those who have a right to

stay can do so, and can receive essential

support to integrate into communities.

One life lost in the Mediterranean is one life

too many. We need stronger coordination of

rescue operations, including with

neighbouring third countries, and increased

surveillance capabilities for Frontex.

We will never accept that smugglers and

human traffickers are the ones who decide

who comes to Europe and under what

circumstances. There will be no impunity

for smugglers and people traffickers.

We will break their business model by

working with international partners in the

Global Alliance to Counter Migrant

Smuggling and taking firm action against

Europe’s shadow economy.

We will act to ensure that migrants are not

exploited in our labour market and have good

working conditions. We will disrupt and

prosecute the perpetrators, using a ‘follow

the money’ approach to tackle illegal profits,

including through enhanced cooperation on

asset confiscation. We will strengthen the

capacity of Europol in this area.

This fair and firm approach to managing

migration will enable us to open up legal

pathways.

We will support Member States and

companies with legal migration based on

the skills needs of our economies and our

regions. We will help match the skills of

third country nationals with labour market

gaps in Europe and we will make it easier to

attract the right talent with harmonised rules

on the recognition of qualifications.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Supporting people, strengthening our

societies and our social model

Europe has a unique quality of life, which

serves both as a competitive advantage for

our economy and as an essential pillar of our

society ensuring that no one is left behind.

However, the crises of recent years have had

a direct impact on the quality of life of many

Europeans, from the cost of living, housing

and energy, to the fairness of incomes and to

divisions and inequalities in our society.

As our societies and economies continue to

change – and as the speed of that change

accelerates – we must focus our efforts on

sustaining and improving our unique quality

of life. We must reunite our society and

ensure that it works for all, with equal

opportunities and quality jobs.

This is our European way of life. And we

must always promote it.

Social fairness in the modern

economy

Europe’s way of life depends on the

protections and opportunities of our social

model and our social market economy.

This is why it is so important for the

principles of the European Pillar of Social

Rights to become a reality across our Union,

respecting each country’s social model.

We need new impetus in areas where more

progress is needed and we will frame this

work in a new Action Plan on the

Implementation of the European Pillar of

Social Rights.

It will include initiatives looking at how

digitalisation is impacting the world of work,

from AI management, to telework and the

impact of an “always on” culture on people’s

mental health. New forms of work should not

lead to fewer rights, and I will propose to

introduce a right to disconnect.

People and their jobs must always remain at

the heart of our social market economy even

as our industries and economies change

shape. We need to ensure a just transition

for all.

This is why I will put forward a Quality

Jobs Roadmap, developed together with the

social partners. It will support fair wages,

good working conditions, training and fair

job transitions for workers and self-employed

people, notably by increasing collective

bargaining coverage.

And we will significantly increase our

funding for a just transition across the

next long-term budget.

This will be part of a renewed commitment

to strengthening European social dialogue in

a time of economic and social change.

Together with European trade unions and

employers, we will deliver a new Pact for

European Social Dialogue in early 2025.

This will be part of our work to help people

to get access to the essential protections and

services they need, along with addressing the

root causes of poverty through a first-ever

EU Anti-Poverty Strategy.

As part of this we will strengthen the Child

Guarantee to prevent and fight social

exclusion through education, healthcare and

other essential public services.

We urgently need to address the housing

crisis facing millions of families and young

people.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

The percentage of household income spent

on housing has risen dramatically. Rents and

house prices are soaring. There is also

significant and growing investment gap in

social and affordable housing.

To support Member States in addressing

these issues, I will appoint a Commissioner

whose responsibilities will include housing,

and I will put forward a first-ever European

Affordable Housing Plan.

This will address structural drivers, develop a

strategy for housing construction, offer

technical assistance to cities and Member

States and focus on investment.

We will work with the European Investment

Bank on a pan-European investment

platform for affordable and sustainable

housing to attract more private and public

investment.

As an immediate first step, we will propose

to inject liquidity into the market by allowing

Member States to double the planned

cohesion policy investments in affordable

housing.

We will also revise our State aid rules to

enable housing support measures, especially

for affordable energy-efficient and social

housing.

Central to this will be a swift and effective

roll-out of the Social Climate Fund, which

will notably help with renovations and access

to affordable and energy-efficient housing.

Four years ago, I launched the New

European Bauhaus, bringing sustainability

together with inclusion and affordability,

creativity with innovation. And we will now

enlarge this community.

We must also address the other inequalities

that test the cohesion of our societies. We

will tackle the root causes of demographic

change and adapt to new realities. In the

coming years, Europe will be confronted

with various challenges, from pensions to

public services, from labour shortages to

fiscal sustainability and disparities between

generations and regions.

We will look at increasing participation in

the labour market, especially by women and

young people, reducing regional disparities

so people can stay in their home regions, and

supporting young parents for a healthy work

life balance.

Regions will remain at the centre of our

work.

We need a strengthened cohesion and

growth policy with regions at the centre. It

must be designed in partnership with

national, regional and local authorities. We

will address regional and social disparities

and ensure all citizens have an effective right

to stay in the place they call home.

As part of this, we will need to mobilise

reforms and investments to help build what a

community needs to thrive: public services

and private activities, education and skills,

transport and digital connectivity.

And we will take into account the specific

economic and social challenges facing

islands, such as housing, transport, water and

waste management. We will also continue to

address challenges facing outermost regions.

Reuniting our societies,

supporting our young people

One of the takeaways from the last European

elections was an unease in society, causing

divisions in our communities and enabling

extremists to play on people’s fears.

We will work on safeguarding the rights of

persons belonging to minorities in Europe.

We must also ensure that decisions taken

today do not harm to future generations and

that there is increased solidarity and

engagement between people of different

ages. To lead this work, I will appoint a

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Commissioner whose responsibilities will

include ensuring intergenerational fairness.

We must reunite our society through

education, supporting young people and

building on the things that we have in

common as Europeans.

We will strengthen Erasmus+ - including

for vocational training - so that more people

can benefit. This is key for people to develop

skills and create shared experiences and a

better understanding of each other.

This will be part of a wider commitment to

giving young people greater freedom and

responsibility within our societies and

democracies.

The new College will lead the way.

I will ask all Commissioners to organise their

first annual Youth Policy Dialogues within

the first 100 days of the mandate. These

dialogues will be repeated annually.

I want to make sure that young people can

use their voice – their own voice – to help

shape our future.

This is why I will set up a President’s

Youth Advisory Board with young people

from all Member States to advise me on

issues that matter to their peers in their

community and to act as sounding board for

ideas developed by the Commission.

I believe one of our greatest challenges in

this decade is protecting the mental health

of our children and young people –

especially online.

The early and teenage years are critical for

brain and personality development – and are

also times of vulnerability to harms from

social media and excessive screen time. We

must have an open and evidence-based

debate on this issue. This is why we will

launch an EU-wide inquiry on the broader

impacts of social media on well-being.

We will tackle unethical techniques used by

online platforms by taking action on the

addictive design of online services, such as

infinite scroll, default auto play or constant

push. We will also firmly combat the

growing trend of abusive behaviour online

with an action plan against cyberbullying.

Finally, we will focus on the things that make

up our European way of life: our culture and

history. I want to make it easier for people –

especially younger generations – to benefit

from our rich and diverse cultural heritage.

A Union of equality

Five years ago, we set about building a

Union of equality. I am proud of the historic

progress. However, for too many people,

equality is not yet a reality. We must

continue to do more for everyone to live,

thrive and lead, regardless of who they are.

This is why I will task a Commissioner for

Equality with proposing an updated strategy

on LGBTIQ equality and developing a new

anti-racism strategy for post-2025.

We will continue to strengthen our daily

work to strive for gender equality. This is

an area where we have made historic

progress, from women on boards to pay

transparency. But we are also seeing deeply

worrying trends – from the scourge of

femicide and violence against women to

obstacles preventing women from

progressing in their careers or their

education.

To strengthen our commitment, we will

propose a new Gender Equality Strategy

for post-2025. It will set out our plan to

strengthen women’s rights across the board,

from the fight against gender-based violence

to empowering women in politics and the

labour market, across the EU, as well as

across the EU institutions.

Finally, I support the idea of a Roadmap for

Women’s Rights which we will present on

the next International Women’s Day.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Sustaining our quality of life: food security,

water and nature

Europe’s quality of life depends on having a

secure and affordable supply of quality local

food. Farming is a core part of our

European way life - and it must always

stay that way.

It is thanks to Europe’s 9 million farms – and

the wider agri-food sector - that Europe has

the healthiest and highest-quality food in the

world. This is a strategic asset and means

Europe is vital for global food security.

Our farmers and rural areas are increasingly

under pressure - from the impact of climate

change to unfair global competition, higher

energy prices, a lack of younger farmers and

difficulties in accessing capital. At the same

time, they are making huge efforts to

contribute to the green transition, for instance

through nature-based solutions.

I want to continue engaging with farmers,

policy makers, civil society, stakeholders and

citizens so we can build a competitive and

resilient agriculture and food system.

This is why I convened a Strategic Dialogue

on Agriculture which will shortly present its

report. Building on these recommendations,

I will present a Vision for Agriculture and

Food in the first 100 days looking at how to

ensure the long-term competitiveness and

sustainability of our farming sector within

the boundaries of our planet.

In this regard, it is vital that farmers have a

fair and sufficient income. They should not

be forced to systematically sell their products

below production costs.

I will always defend an EU income policy for

Europe’s farmers, and will ensure that the

EU budget and our common agricultural

policy is targeted, and finds the right balance

between incentives, investments and

regulation.

We must enable farmers to work their land

without excessive bureaucracy, support

family farms, and reward farmers working

with nature, preserving our biodiversity and

natural ecosystems and helping to

decarbonise our economy on the way to net-

zero by 2050.

We will support the competitiveness of our

entire food value chain through investment

and innovation on farms, but also in

cooperatives, in our agri-food businesses and

in the many SMEs in the sector.

As farmers are often the most vulnerable part

of this chain, we have to correct existing

imbalances, strengthen farmers’ position and

further protect them against unfair trading

practices.

Together, we will show that Europe will

protect its own food sovereignty and those

who provide for us all.

This must also apply to our fishermen and

women. They ensure that fisheries remain the

lifeblood of our coastal communities and

economies. They provide a healthy supply of

food to local, national and international

markets.

I will appoint a Fisheries and Oceans

Commissioner tasked with ensuring the

sector remains sustainable, competitive and

resilient and with upholding a level playing

field for the European fisheries chain.

A European Oceans Pact will focus on

boosting the blue economy and ensuring the

good governance and sustainability of our

oceans in all of their dimensions.

We must also continue the protection of our

natural world. Our forests and woodlands,

our wetlands and our grasslands are not only

our home and landscapes of the lives of

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Europeans, but are also essential to

regulating our climate and ensuring food and

water security.

We will focus on incentives and on equitable

and efficient implementation, notably to

ensure we reach our international

biodiversity commitments, such as those

taken in the Kunming Montreal

Agreement.

Climate adaptation,

preparedness and solidarity

One of the greatest risks to our security is the

impact of climate change. Extreme weather

continues to ravage ever greater areas of

Europe through floods, fires and droughts,

throughout the year and across our Union.

Thanks to our Union Civil Protection

Mechanism, personnel, planes and

helicopters from across Europe help to put

out forest fires and deal with the devastating

impact of floods, storms or droughts.

This is Europe at its practical best. But we

know that will need more of it, more often, as

the planet heats up and as the damage to life,

land and property becomes more frequent,

more intense and more devastating.

We need better resources and more access

to more European assets. We need a whole

of society approach and to use all of the tools

required, including military ones.

I believe we need to work towards a

European Civil Defence Mechanism,

looking at all facets of crisis and disaster

management, along community resilience

building. This will also build on President

Niinistö´s report.

As Europe’s climate warms faster than the

global average, we must step up work on

climate resilience and preparedness.

We will map the risks and preparedness

needs for infrastructure, energy, water, food

and land in cities and rural areas, as well as

the need for data and early warning systems.

This will be part of a European Climate

Adaptation Plan, to support Member States

notably on preparedness and planning and

ensure regular science-based risk

assessments.

This must go hand in hand with

strengthening Europe’s water security.

Water is an indispensable resource for the

security of our food, energy and economy but

is increasingly under stress from climate

change and increasing demands.

We need a new European Water Resilience

Strategy to ensure sources are properly

managed, scarcity is addressed, and that we

enhance the competitive innovative edge of

our water industry and take a circular

economy approach. As part of this, we will

lead efforts to help mitigate and prevent

acute water stress across the world.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Protecting our democracy, upholding our

values

Europe’s future in a fractured world will

depend on having a strong democracy and on

defending the values that give us the

freedoms and rights that we cherish.

Protecting our democracy

Our democratic systems and institutions

are under attack. We have seen a rise in the

number of threats from internal and foreign

actors – whether hostile governments or non-

state actors. The methods used are now

harder to track, more damaging and easier to

deploy with digital tools and social media.

This reflects a deep change in the

information space, shifting from editorial

media sources to user-generated content

mediated by platforms and pushed by

algorithms. This enables new freedoms but

also lowers the cost of manipulating

information and makes it easier for Russia

and others to step up information warfare.

We need to do more to protect our

democracy.

This is why I will propose a new European

Democracy Shield. As part of this, we will

work to counter foreign information

manipulation and interference online,

building on the examples of Viginum in

France or the Swedish Psychological

Defence Agency.

The aim is to increase situational awareness,

by detecting, analysing and proactively

countering disinformation and information

manipulation.

We will focus on societal resilience and

preparedness, through increased digital and

media literacy and boosting prevention

through pre-bunking. We will create a

European network of fact-checkers and

make it available in all languages.

We will also continue to step up digital

enforcement to ensure that manipulated or

misleading information is detected, flagged

and, where appropriate, removed in line with

the Digital Services Act.

Finally, we will also address the ever-more

realistic deepfakes that have impacted

elections across Europe. We will ensure that

transparency requirements in the AI Act are

implemented and that we strengthen our

approach to AI-produced content.

In protecting our democracy, we will always

respect our enduring commitment to

preserving and promoting free speech.

Strengthening the rule of law

Europe’s democracy and economy relies on

the rule of law. It makes our society work

and ensures that rights are defended,

corruption is punished, and contracts are

enforced.

The rule of law does not have an end point.

Challenges exist right across Europe, at

different scales and with different issues.

We have done a lot in the last five years. We

are now better equipped than ever to tackle

rule of law issues in an objective way - and

in the same way - in every Member State.

But we have also seen worrying trends

emerge.

Strengthening the rule of law will be our

daily work and duty.

We will continue to improve our monitoring

and reporting, and to strengthen checks and

balances, notably by tracking the

implementation of recommendations.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

The Rule of Law Report has shown how

dialogue can help make progress. We now

need to consolidate the report and ensure it

looks at all issues across Europe.

We will add a Single Market dimension to

the report to address rule of law issues

affecting companies, especially SMEs,

operating across borders. We will also

include other accession countries in the Rule

of Law Report as and when they are ready.

We will invest in upholding the rule of

law. I will propose that EU funding also be

dedicated to national measures, for example

on fighting corruption, and to protecting the

EU financial interests.

Respect for the rule of law is a must for

EU funds.

To ensure this, we will build a closer link

between the recommendations in the Rule of

Law Report and financial support. And we

will ensure that the future long-term budget

has strong safeguards on the rule of law –

including the general regime of

conditionality, applying to all EU funds.

We will also learn from NextGenerationEU,

which has shown how the budget can be

linked to reforms that strengthen the rule of

law.

Enforcement through infringements and the

reinforced application of the Article 7

mechanism must continue to be used

effectively, including in a future enlarged

Union.

One of the central tenets of the rule of law,

and of democracy more broadly, is media

freedom.

In a world of ever-faster media, and ever

more disinformation, we must do everything

we can to support a free media across our

Union.

We will implement the European Media

Freedom Act and increase our support for

and protection of independent media and

journalists, clamping down on acts of

pressure and unethical behaviour.

Putting citizens at the heart of

our democracy

The Conference on the Future of Europe –

and the success of the European Citizens’

Panels – have been big steps towards a more

deliberative democracy and engaging people

beyond elections or politics.

We now need to embed citizens’

participation across the EU.

Every year, we will choose policy areas and

proposals where recommendations from a

European Citizens’ Panel would have the

greatest value. We will follow up on their

recommendations, such as those from the

2024 panel on tackling hatred in society.

In the same spirit, we will also step up our

engagement with civil society organisations

that have expertise and an important role to

play in defending specific societal issues and

upholding human rights.

We must ensure civil society is better

protected in its work.

We will also work with local councillors on

citizen engagement to get a better

understanding of how Europe impacts

everyday life. Together with the Committee

of the Regions, we are already working with

a network of more than 3,000 local

councillors and we should strengthen this

network over the next five years.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

A global Europe: Leveraging our power

and partnerships

In a world as dangerous as it has been for

generations, Europe needs to be more

assertive in pursuing its strategic interests.

Russia’s war of aggression – driven by

Putin’s imperial desire to destroy Ukraine

and its European future – is part of a wider,

systematic attack on Europe, our values and

on the rules-based international order.

Ukraine is fighting for our freedom every

day – and we must work for its freedom

too.

This will continue to be our foremost priority

domestically as well as internationally,

rallying partners to support with short term

needs and long-term reconstruction efforts.

We cannot see this war on European soil in

isolation. This is a moment of fracture for the

world. The last years were a statement of

intent from a new league of authoritarians –

from Iran to North Korea to Russia and

beyond – who work to sow division and

create an alternative international order based

on redrawn maps, imperial ideas and spheres

of influence

The war in Gaza and the destabilisation of

the Middle East as a whole is leading to

bloodshed and instability across the region.

Coups and conflicts are escalating across the

world.

We have entered an age of geostrategic

rivalries.

The more aggressive posture and unfair

economic competition from China, its “no-

limits” friendship with Russia - and the

dynamics of its relationship with Europe –

reflect a shift from cooperation to

competition. We are seeing a weaponisation

of all types of policies, from energy to

migration and the climate. As a result, our

rules-based international order is fraying, and

our global institutions have become less

effective.

This new reality will endure whatever the

outcome of elections across the world in the

coming months. Our new foreign and

security policy must be designed with this

unfiltered reality in mind.

This starts with working like-minded partners

and friends within the G7 and beyond. In this

spirit, we will work to strengthen relations

with the United Kingdom on issues of

shared interest, such as energy, security,

resilience and people-to-people contacts.

I will work closely with the High

Representative/Vice-President to ensure a

coordinated approach to our external action.

Enlargement as a geopolitical

imperative

The celebrations marking 20 years since the

largest ever wave of enlargement allowed us

to reflect on the success it has proved to be

for those countries and the Union as a whole.

History is calling once again, and Europe has

a clear choice to make for its future.

I believe it is a moral, political and

geostrategic imperative to further complete

our Union - in line with the promise we gave

in our Treaties.

In a world of major powers, a larger and

stronger Union gives us greater geopolitical

weight and influence on the global stage. It

helps reduce our dependencies, enhances our

resilience and strengthens our

competitiveness. It makes us more secure and

it can help anchor democracy, stability and

the rule of law across Europe.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

But this will not be an easy journey.

Accession to the EU will always be a

merit-based process – and each candidate

will be assessed on its own progress towards

meeting all criteria.

We will step up support to prepare candidate

countries, notably using the investment and

reforms in the Growth Plan for the Western

Balkans and the Ukraine Facility. This will

help integrate them into parts of the EU

acquis and the Single Market and will get

them used to the approach of EU funds.

The rule of law and fundamental values will

continue to be the cornerstones of the EU’s

enlargement policy, and they will be the

foundations of our reformed and enlarged

Union in the future.

I will appoint a dedicated Commissioner for

Enlargement to steer this work.

Many doubted the EU’s ability to integrate a

large number of Member States in 2004 – all

with different strengths, economic structures

and population sizes. But the EU rose to the

challenge, by preparing internally and by

integrating early.

Europe will rise to this challenge once again.

A more strategic approach to

our neighbourhood

This more focused approach to enlargement

should also come with a more focused

approach to our wider neighbourhood,

especially the Mediterranean.

I will appoint a Commissioner for the

Mediterranean to focus on investment and

partnerships, economic stability, job creation,

energy, security, migration and other areas of

mutual interests, respecting our values and

principles. They will work closely with the

High Representative/Vice-President.

The new Pact for the Mediterranean will

reshape this essential relationship and

provide a clear political signal of partnership

in a more contested and unstable world.

Beyond this, Europe must also play an

active role in the Middle East – in the

interests of all parties and for the stability of

the region.

We must continue to take part in all

diplomatic efforts to ensure a just and

comprehensive resolution to the ongoing

conflict in Gaza.

We must do all we can to stop the tragic loss

of life. This means working for an immediate

ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages,

and a significant and sustained increase in the

flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

We need an enduring ceasefire and to look

further ahead. On the basis of agreed

reforms, we will work on a multi-year

support package for an effective Palestinian

Authority and to help pave the way for a two-

state solution. The two-state solution is the

best way to ensure security for both Israelis

and Palestinians.

This will be part of a wider comprehensive

EU-Middle East Strategy with a view to

‘the day after’ the war in Gaza. This strategy

should focus on promoting the two-state

solution and strengthening partnerships with

key regional stakeholders.

A new economic foreign policy

In today’s world geopolitics and

geoeconomics go together. Europe’s foreign

and economic policy must do the same.

Europe’s trading power and economic

openness is essential to our prosperity –

opening up new markets for our companies,

offering a wider selection of sustainable

goods to consumers, and providing new

investment in our industries.

This is acutely important in a world shaped

by the fight for a technological edge, by the

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

weaponisation of economic dependencies

and by an increasingly thin line between

economy and security. We must be clear-

eyed about these risks.

We need a new economic foreign policy for

today’s realities.

The three central planks of this will be

economic security, trade, and investment in

partnerships.

Firstly, the Commission will prioritise

advancing Europe’s economic security and

economic statecraft.

This means boosting our competitiveness at

home and investing in research capacity for

strategic and dual-use technologies that are

essential for our economy and security.

At the same time, we must be more assertive

in protecting our economy from key

technology leakage and security concerns.

This issue is particularly acute when dealing

with those who are also strategic competitors

and systemic rivals.

This will be based on a clear-eyed risk

assessment and our principle of ‘de-risking

not decoupling’.

We will complete the review of the foreign

direct investment screening framework, build

a genuine coordinated approach to export

controls, and address risks from outbound

investments. We will develop economic

security standards for key supply chains with

our G7 and other like-minded partners.

The second pillar of our economic foreign

policy is trade.

We will continue to deepen our free and fair

trade links with growth centres and partners

around the world, ensuring reciprocity and a

level playing field.

In order to ensure access to what we need to

build diversified and resilient supply chains,

we will also develop a new range of Clean

Trade and Investment Partnerships and

deepen our relationships on critical minerals

and raw materials.

To support this, we must sustain and improve

rules-based trade, including through a

reformed and strengthened World Trade

Organization.

At the same time, we will be more ambitious

in enforcing our trade agreements and will

use all of our trade defence instruments

where and when needed.

The third strand of our economic foreign

policy is partnerships and investing together

in our interests and our partners through

Global Gateway, our initiative to invest in

infrastructure projects worldwide.

We will take Global Gateway to the next

level by proposing an integrated offer to our

partners – with infrastructure investment,

trade, macro-economic support part of the

package.

We will do this in a Team Europe approach

mobilising Member States, public

development banks and development finance

institutions, the European Investment Bank,

the European Bank for Reconstruction and

Development, export credit agencies, and the

private sector.

This is how we want to create long-term,

mutually beneficial partnerships – by

investing in a common future and

committing for the long term.

This also means working on areas of mutual

interest with the countries and economies of

the Indo-Pacific, Africa and Latin America

and the Caribbean.

The Indo-Pacific has become a decisive

region for the world’s future. Building on our

existing strategy, we will deepen our

engagement with our partners in the region.

We will propose a new Strategic EU-India

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Agenda and strengthen our cooperation with

ASEAN.

Similarly, we will work with Japan, Korea,

New Zealand and Australia with whom we

face common challenges in cyber, space and

in the secure supply of critical minerals and

technologies. This includes our collective

efforts to deploy the full range of our

combined statecraft to deter China from

unilaterally changing the status quo by

military means, particularly over Taiwan.

We need new impetus in our mutual

partnership with Africa ahead of the next

EU-African Union Summit in 2025. Through

Global Gateway, we will drive investments

in transport corridors, ports, renewable

energy generation, green hydrogen

production and raw material value chains.

We will work together to mutually address

Africa’s concerns, from the reform of

international institutions to the impact of

climate change, demography and migration

on our continents.

We will deepen the cooperation between the

EU and Latin America and the Caribbean

through Global Gateway investment and

cooperation on our shared interests, from

security to energy.

Reshaping multilateralism for

today’s world

Europe will always defend the international

rules-based order, in which laws and norms

are stronger than might and conflict. This is

the foundation of our Union and it will be the

foundation of our future.

However, we must also recognise the

legitimate concerns of partners around the

world who believe the current system was

neither designed by them nor works for them.

I would like Europe to play a leading role

in reforming the international system.

This will start with the upcoming UN

Summit for the Future to work towards a

more equitable representation for all regions

and tackle questions linked to development

and debt.

We should seize this opportunity to make our

international system fit for today’s world – in

particular on digital questions where strong

safeguards and a new form of governance are

needed.

We also need to listen and respond better to

the concerns of our partners impacted by

European legislation, in particular those

linked to the European Green Deal.

We need a more systematic approach to

assessing the impact of our laws on non-EU

countries, and we need to provide more

targeted support to help them adjust to and

benefit from those laws.

Political Guidelines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

Delivering together and preparing our

Union for the future

In the last five years, Europe has set course

on an ambitious programme of

modernisation. We must now focus on

implementation, investment and reform to

prepare our future. This cuts across all of the

priorities set out in these Guidelines and will

require a team effort by all institutions and

Member States.

A new budget fit for our

ambitions

The European budget improves the quality of

life and the livelihoods of citizens, farmers,

researchers, businesses and regions across

Europe and beyond.

In recent years, the budget has again shown

how important it is – from the pandemic

response to dealing with the energy crisis and

supporting Ukraine.

We agreed on the SURE programme to help

save some 40 million jobs throughout our

Union, on NextGenerationEU to invest in our

future economy and on REPowerEU to help

bring energy prices down and boost our

supplies after Putin’s blackmail.

And when we needed essential funding for

urgent priorities, we agreed on the first ever

mid-term revision of our budget.

All of this shows that a lot can be done with

the European budget to deliver where it

matters the most. We must now make sure

that we use this financial capacity in the best

way possible in the next years.

But we have also learnt a lot from this

experience – notably the need for simplicity

and flexibility, speed and strategic focus in

our spending.

Our spending at European level in the current

budget period measures up favourably

against our competitors – even without

accounting for national spending. However,

our spending is spread over too many

overlapping programmes – many of which

fund the same things but with different

requirements and difficulties to combine

funding effectively. We need to better focus

our EU spending on our shared priorities.

We need a new approach for a modern

and reinforced EU budget.

With this in mind, I will propose a new long-

term budget in 2025 which will be:

more focused to align with our priorities and

objectives, and targeted to where EU action

is most needed in a flexible way. I want a

policy-based budget, not a programme-based

budget.

simpler in the way it works – with fewer

programmes and a plan for each country

linking key reforms with investment, and

focusing on our joint priorities, including

promoting economic, social and territorial

cohesion.

more impactful, notably with a European

Competitiveness Fund and better use of our

budget to leverage further national, private

and institutional financing.

Respect of the rule of law is – and will be -

a must for EU funds.

We will also need to revamp our external

action financing, to make it more impactful

and targeted for our partners and more

aligned with our strategic interests.

This ambition requires strengthened and

modernised revenues for the EU budget.

New own resources will be needed to ensure

sufficient and sustainable financing for our

common priorities.

Political Guid elines | Ursula von der Leyen – Candidate for the European Commission President

An ambitious reform agenda for

Europe

While reforms were necessary before, with

enlargement they become indispensable.

I believe we need an ambitious reform

agenda to ensure the proper functioning of a

larger Union, to ensure we are equipped to

tackle our geopolitical challenges and to

improve democratic legitimacy, notably

through citizens’ participation. This includes

continuing to follow up on the conclusions of

the Conference on the Future of Europe.

I believe we need Treaty change where it

can improve our Union.

We must also use enlargement as a catalyst

for progress in terms of our capacity to act,

our policies and our spending programmes.

Both the EU and future Member States

should be ready at the time of accession. We

should work on both in parallel. The EU

must widen as it deepens.

In the first 100 days, we will present our pre-

enlargement policy reviews focusing on

individual sectors such as the rule of law, the

Single Market, food security, defence and

security, climate and energy and migration,

as well as social, economic and territorial

convergence more broadly.

We will put forward proposals to enhance

Europe’s capacity to act, looking at new

formats and decision-making processes,

including for a larger Union.

In doing so, we will focus on what can

already be done now and those areas where a

broad consensus is emerging.

Delivering together with the

European Parliament

In 2019, I made it a priority to strengthen the

partnership between the European

Commission and the European Parliament.

I pledged to give the Parliament a stronger

role in initiating and shaping legislation. We

made good on that commitment by

responding to Parliament´s Article 225

resolutions with legislative proposals in full

respect of proportionality, subsidiarity and

better law-making principles.

I continue to support this right of initiative.

We will strengthen our cooperation on

Article 225 by asking Commissioners to take

part in structured dialogues with

Parliamentary committees on these

resolutions.

At the same time, there are many areas where

we can improve the way our institutions

work together.

This is why I want to work with the

European Parliament to swiftly revise our

Framework Agreement. This will help

strengthen our joint political responsibility,

strengthen our dialogue, increase the flow of

information and ensure greater transparency.

Many of the crises we have faced during the

last mandate required exceptional responses,

notably through the use of Article 122 TFEU.

I have heard the Parliament’s views on this

subject and will ensure that this tool is used

only in exceptional circumstances. When it is

used, I will ensure that the Commission will

fully justify the use of Article 122 to the

Parliament.

Finally, I want to strengthen our dialogue

and ensure that Commissioners will be more

present in their respective committees.

The College will be available to respond to

any demands from the European Parliament

to debate in plenary in the most appropriate

format.