Lisbon and Gothenburg

The European Council in Lisbon (March 2000) adopted a strategy focused on employment and designed to make the Union ‘the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world by the year 2010’. It set the target of achieving 3% average economic growth and the creation of 20 million jobs by 2010.

The agenda set out the way to achieve this with a series of goals in areas such as employment, innovation, enterprise, liberalisation and the environment. Although some progress was made on innovating Europe's economy, there is growing concern that the reform process is not going fast enough and that the ambitious targets will not be reached.

The Gothenburg Council (June 2001) completed this strategy by linking it with sustainable development.