Keynote speech by President von der Leyen on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of Bocconi University

Presidente Mattarella,

Magnifico Rettore,

Professor Sironi,

Distinguished speakers and guests,

Dear students and faculty,

Carissimo Mario,

It is such an honour to join you today to celebrate 120 years of outstanding accomplishments by Bocconi University, but also the conclusion of your amazing tenure as President of this University. Bocconi has always had a European vocation. Since its foundation, Bocconi's goal is to raise new generations of European leaders. And you, dear Mario, have renewed and realised this European vocation: You made Bocconi a founding member of CIVICA, the European network of social science universities. You helped Bocconi attract students from over 100 nationalities. You have given almost 60 years of your life and work to Bocconi. And the results are there for all to see. Here is your legacy, Mario: It is the bright future of these students and of the whole Bocconi family.

And I have been so lucky to have you as an adviser and a friend in these three years at the European Commission. I benefitted a lot from your advice as an academic but also your experience as a former Prime Minister of Italy. Throughout your career, you have strived to keep Italy at the heart of Europe. And you have made Italy's voice heard and respected in all European capitals. You have always been a link between the North and the South of Europe. I have often heard you explain that Europe is strong when Italy is strong, and vice versa. You have been an advocate and an architect of reforms here in Italy to modernise the country and strengthen its place as Europe's second largest industrial power. And at the same time, you have been an advocate and architect of reforms in Europe, too. Because you have always believed that Europe had to change to keep pace with a changing world. Oggi l'Italia è più europea, e c'è più Italia in Europa. Grazie Mario.

As European Commissioner, you were a guardian of free and fair competition and of our Single Market. As Prime Minister, you stabilised the Italian economy. And in parallel, you started calling for change in the EU economic governance. You have always stressed the crucial link between investments and reforms. In your words: Public investments are ‘the fuel' of economic growth. But ‘reforms are the engine.'

This philosophy has been our guiding light throughout these years of pandemic and war. Today, I would like to mention three examples, about how the right mix of investments and reforms is moving Europe forward. Let me begin with NextGenerationEU – our EUR-800-billion plan to boost and modernise Europe's economy. NextGenerationEU and Italy is a perfect match. Italy is receiving more than EUR 190 billion for investments and reforms. Almost EUR 67 billion have already been handed over to Italy. And their impact is starting to be very visible. I know, for instance, that Bocconi and three other universities in Milan have just launched a project called MUSA for urban regeneration, funded by NextGenerationEU. You are mobilising 700 researchers and joining forces with 20 private companies, from the energy sector to pharma and the chips industry. And together, you will design the city of the future, powered by clean energy and with clean transport for all, that will host high-tech companies and create new jobs. I am very proud that Europe is investing in this ambitious project.

But besides unprecedented investments, NextGenerationEU has also promoted some crucial reforms which Italians had been waiting for decades. One of them is the reform of public administration. And I know that some professors from Bocconi have been closely involved in its inception. But also reforms to reduce late payments and bureaucracy for small companies or accelerating procedures for renewable energy. As you say, Mario: Reforms are the engine of Italy's economy. They can really boost your recovery.

My second point is on investments and reforms to make energy more affordable. Italy is one of the countries that was hit the hardest by Russia's gas blackmail. Putin has cut its exports of pipeline gas to Europe by 80% within eight months. But we have managed to compensate. And Italy makes for a perfect example. You used to import 40% of your gas from Russia, and now that share is down to roughly 10% – thanks to an impressive effort to diversify your supply. Europe's storages were filled by 96% at the beginning of November. This means we are safe for this winter. And in parallel, we have worked on a set of measures to bring prices down. We have created a solidarity contribution on the extra profits of energy companies. It will generate roughly EUR 4 billion in revenues here in Italy already in 2023 – money to support vulnerable households and businesses. We are working on the joint purchase of gas because, if we go to the markets together, we can all get better prices. And we have proposed a market correction mechanism – the so-called price cap. Italy has demanded it from the very outset. It will prevent excessive price hikes, cut manipulation and speculation. And Member States are now discussing how to make it fit for all of Europe.

But now, we must also focus on what comes after the winter. There is still a gap to be filled. But the reassuring news is that we have the potential. It is renewable energy. This year, we have achieved the largest growth in renewables in the history of our European Union. 50 gigawatts – which is double what we added last year. And we could accelerate even more. The International Energy Agency tells us that we could replace another 14 bcm of Russian gas already next year, if we speed up renewable projects. They are stuck because of slow permitting. We have therefore just passed a new emergency regulation to immediately unblock renewable energy projects. Renewables are not only good for the planet because they are clean. Renewables are also good for our independence because they are home-grown and they are affordable compared to fossil fuels. So, let us work together on reforms to accelerate the green transition. Italian families do need clean and affordable energy. And Italian industries need clean and affordable energy.

Italy is home to some of the most innovative companies, small and medium-sized. So, the industrial base is strong, but the cost of energy is heavily weighing on them. And the only sustainable way out is the transition to renewable energy. Again, renewable energy is not only affordable, but also home-grown. But the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy takes time and the global competition is getting tougher. The US has just presented a massive investment plan into the clean tech sectors. The so-called Inflation Reduction Act. First of all, it is good that the US is joining us in decarbonising their economy. It matters because the US is the second largest emitter in the world. But the Inflation Reduction Act can also create distortions by, for example, privileging US firms. It is the ‘Buy American' logic that underpins part of the IRA. It is tax breaks that could lead to discrimination and production subsidies that could discriminate European companies. We have to address this. That is why we are thinking along three lines on how to nurture our clean tech industry. On our first point, against the backdrop I just described, we have to adjust our own rules. We have to make it simpler for public investments to power the transition. Our state aid rules exist for a very good reason. You know this, Mario, better than anyone else. They make sure that companies from all Member States can compete on an equal footing inside our Single Market. However, we will take a fresh look. This includes, for example, how we can make our frameworks more predictable and simple; or how we support the whole value chain, down to the mass production of the most strategic green-tech solutions and clean end products. Lots of strategic work to do.

But not all Member States have the same capacity to invest their budgets in strategic sectors. So – and that is my second point – we also need complementary European financing to foster clean-tech across Europe. This is where REPowerEU comes into play. REPowerEU is our plan to overcome our energy dependency on Russia. REPowerEU would mean EUR 9 billion in clean energy investments for Italy. I have now proposed to further boost REPowerEU to accelerate the clean transition all across Europe. That is the short term. In the mid-term, we need a structural solution for our clean tech industry. The goal of our European policy is for European industry to be the leaders in the clean transition. This is why I introduced the idea of establishing a sovereignty fund. The logic behind is simple: A common European industrial policy requires common European funding. Here, too, this is about strategic decisions that would allow us to maintain global leadership.

Third, we are closely working with the Biden administration on the most concerning aspects of the IRA. This includes, for instance, joint efforts on several clean tech sectors, where we face common challenges like over-dependencies on China. One of the possible solutions could be to create a raw materials club, to overcome China's monopoly in this field. We have a lot of work ahead of us. But one thing is for sure: We are stronger individually when we stand together collectively.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

My final point has to do with the reform of our economic governance. You have worked so much on this, dear Mario. So I am glad that we have delivered a new proposal, which I think resonates with everything you have been saying for almost ten years now. The future of our children needs both that we invest in sustainability and that we invest sustainably. This is why we want to give national governments more flexibility on their debt reduction path, to open the space for strategic investment. The Maastricht targets do not change. What changes is how we get there. There will be a common European framework, in which Member States will design a plan to achieve a gradual reduction of public debt, where investments and reforms go hand in hand. There will be more freedom to invest, but also more scrutiny on progress, once the plan has been agreed, tough enforcement. With this proposal, we could move past a decade of divisive debates on our economic governance. It is an economic governance that works for Europe, because it works for all Member States. And I believe that this is also what you, dear Mario, have always strived for, throughout your entire career.

Roughly one year ago, you said, Mario: ‘Europe is trying to find a new balance between sustainability, reforms and investment to support demand.' And I am so grateful for your contribution to finding this balance. I know that you will leave as your legacy a new research centre on European policy, right here at Bocconi. I am sure it will become an important resource in our work at the Commission. And I will still count on your advice in the years to come. Europe needs your wisdom and your capacity to build bridges between academia and politics, between North and South, between the difficulties of the present and a brighter future for all. Please join me in congratulating a great Italian, a great economist and a great European.

Grazie Mario, e viva l'Europa.