Final Word from Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Both Nicolas Sarkozy and Ségol?ne Royal spoke during the French election campaign about the need to take action against the délocalisation or relocation of jobs to lower-wage jurisdictions. Sarkozy called on the EU to protect its citizens against unfair competition, esp. from Asia, and from fiscal, social and environmental dumping in Central and Eastern Europe. Royal wanted to withdraw EU aid to companies that move jobs from one European country to another and to tax their products when they reimport them. A few years ago, such talk would have met with hostility in the CR, but today no one even blinks. The CR's period of heavy inward investment is on the way out, and attention now turns to retaining the investors already here. As these investors begin to flock East to avoid rising wage costs, it will be Czech politicians who start screaming about unfair délocalisation.[Czech Republic France FDI foreign direct investment European Union]