Industrial Policy and Covid Crisis: Mobilising All Levels of Government for Smart Complementarity

Abstract

A coherent industrial strategy at all levels of government (regional, national and European) would help European industry restructure after the Covid crisis, in line with the previous structural trends.  The Covid Crisis has hit European industries in a period of deep structural changes that already put pressure for them to upgrade or branch into new activities, adopt new technologies and redefine their business model.  This paper shows these long-term trends already affecting industry pre-covid and suggests that the pandemics essentially reinforce these previous trends. The need for industrial policy at all levels of government is therefore stronger, and the paper suggests the main issues to be addressed.