EU ministers meeting in Brussels today (29 May) for the Competitiveness Council are set to clash over proposals to transform the European creative sector by reforming the continent’s fragmented copyright levy system. While France and Belgium want strong protection for authors, other countries favour a more liberal approach.
Sony Kapoor, former employee of Lehman Brothers, criticizes the German proposal for a ‘competitiveness’ pact: “As I remember it, excessive and badly designed compensation structures in the financial sector were major factors in the financial crisis. Having failed to address that (bonus levels are back to pre-crisis levels), our dear leaders are focusing on squeezing workers’ wages instead.”