EU steps up Draghi reform drive as progress hits 30%, but toughest changes still ahead
EU has implemented around 30% of Mario Draghi’s competitiveness recommendations, with forecasts suggesting up to 60% could be achieved by next year, according to a new Institut Montaigne assessment. The findings highlight faster-than-expected progress in Brussels’ economic reform agenda, though analysts warn that politically sensitive measures remain unresolved.
The European Union is accelerating the implementation of economic reforms proposed by former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who in 2024 warned of an “existential challenge” to the bloc’s competitiveness. According to a new analysis by the French think tank Institut Montaigne, the EU has already implemented around 30% of the recommendations from his plan. If the current pace is maintained, the level of implementation could rise to 60% by the end of next year.
These estimates differ significantly from a previous study by the European Policy Innovation Council, which put full implementation at only 15%, with a further 23% partially implemented. The discrepancy highlights the difficulty of assessing real progress in large-scale EU reforms.
The Draghi plan has become a key reference point for EU economic policy under Ursula von der Leyen’s second mandate. It calls for closing the innovation gap with the United States and China, deepening the single capital market, and removing barriers to the growth of European companies. In April, EU institutions agreed a joint roadmap to accelerate these reforms, and von der Leyen said the Union is “well on its way”.
However, experts caution that the most difficult changes are still ahead, as they affect the national competences of member states and will require complex political compromises.
Separately, political tensions continue within the EU: the Czech Constitutional Court sided with President Petr Pavel in a dispute with Prime Minister Andrej Babiš over attendance at the NATO summit, ruling that both have the right to be present. The decision temporarily blocked the government’s attempt to exclude the president from the delegation and underlined ongoing tensions within the country’s political system.