You're listening to the European Parliamentary Research Service podcast on a European

services eCard.

We live in a services economy, but despite a year rules to facilitate the provision of services

in the single market, service providers operating across borders

still face obstacles and a lot of red tape. With the introduction of a European services e-card,

the Commission wants to give a fresh boost to the services sector and remove remaining barriers.

Stay with us and we'll walk you through the details of this proposal.

Services are crucial to the EU economy.

They account for over 70% of its GDP

and generate 90% of all the jobs.

In sectors such as construction and business,

providing services across borders is increasingly common

and the number of companies doing it keeps on growing.

However, it's not always easy to benefit from business opportunities in other member states.

Service providers, notably SMEs, trying to set up shop in another EU country or to provide

temporary cross-border services, have a hard time understanding which rules apply and how.

They also face heavy compliance costs when operating cross-borders. All the... have a hard time understanding which rules apply and how.

They also face heavy compliance costs when operating across borders.

All these barriers stop firms from expanding, which leads to higher prices for consumers and less choice.

Moreover, the performance of manufacturing is increasingly linked to the competitiveness of services, so barriers to trade in services

are also barriers to the competitiveness of EU manufacturing.

The services directive adopted in 2006 was the first attempt to break down these barriers

...