EU Bytes Glenn Cezanne D
sear friends and colleagues, fi rst and foremost, I hope you and those close to you are healthy. Tough times, not only for our health, but also for the economy.
My deepest respects those of you who are doing everything possible to make sure your staff is taken care of. I see too many people in various sectors being let go. I understand, context is not allowing anything else. But I just want to remind you that your staff will always be the most important resource you have. Having said that, I am a fi rm believer that things will pick up later this year. But, until then, many of us will have to weather the storm. Working extensively with SMEs, my business partners and I are working on crisis management, helping them overcome the impact of COVID. To this end, we are also keeping a very close eye on political, social and economic developments to understand trends and build scenarios. Quite a task when each country, even each region has its own story to
tell. But, also very interesting when comparing context, actions, trends and outcome. And, the EU is still in full activity mode, with the obvious fact that priorities have changed. The streets might be relatively empty, and policy output might have slowed down, but EU offi cials are generally continuing their work from home. So, the topic I want to discuss with you today is anti-money laundering. A policy area that will never be out of fashion and every time a new initiative is put forward, it threatens the livelihood of many businesses, certainly not least in the gambling sector.
Commission Work Programme 2020
The European Commission published its 2020 Work Programme titled “A Union that strives for more” a couple of months ago. It focuses on green policy (A European Green Deal), digital policy (A Europe fi t for the digital age), “an economy that works for people”, “a
Glenn Cezanne looks at the EU’s ongoing AML process… And Coronavirus, of course.
stronger Europe in the world”, “promoting our European way of life”, and “a new push for European democracy”. Maybe a little ambitious now. SMEs are asking for further state support, trade associations worrying about the income for the next years based on membership fees, and companies lobby to postpone measures under climate and environmental goals. And yes, there is a sincere necessity to take
into account the burden the crisis has on business, social interests, our daily lives, and our ambitions. No reason though to take a step back and let things roll. Quite the opposite. Now is the time to build and show resilience. It does not matter if it is making the best out of the little resources one has left to keep the business alive or learning a new skill. Plenty of online courses out there. It is important to keep the interconnected global system, and yourself going. Quarantine your body, not your mind. Otherwise, COVID-19 will hit us harder than it has to.
28 APRIL 2020
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