Council conclusions on future of European Semester

The Council of the EU adopted conclusions yesterday on the future of the European Semester, the mechanism by which the Commission to provide country-specific guidance to Member States on socio-economic policies, thereby influencing legislation at national level in the field of public expenditure, fiscal policy, employment, education and social care. 

The European Semester mechanism was temporarily adjusted in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 situation, with policy guidance focusing solely on fiscal policies, as the attention was put on the preparation, adoption and implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plans.

The Member States agreed that the European Semester and the Recovery and Resilience Facility should continue to work without duplications, in their respective roles, and called for a swift return to the core elements of the European Semester in the 2022 cycle, especially reinstating country reports and country-specific recommendations.​​

Last year, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) concluded that Member States ‘did not make enough efforts to act on country-specific recommendations’ issued by the Council in relation to the European Semester.

Read the Council’s conclusions here.