Germany, Italy and Belgium seek an EU "emergency brake" on new rules

The joint letter

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have signed a joint letter to European Council President António Costa calling for an "emergency brake" on bureaucracy in the EU. According to Politico, which obtained the letter, the mechanism would let member states halt the adoption of new EU rules that place excessive burdens on governments and businesses. The leaders want the European Council to intervene "as a last resort", but the letter does not detail that role, and reports do not say who could trigger the brake or what majority it would require. Sources at Palazzo Chigi, the seat of the Italian government, confirmed the letter to the Italian news agency Ansa. The letter follows a video conference on 6 October that the three governments hosted for the informal group on European competitiveness.

Investment priority and reporting cuts

The letter proposes a "priority rule" that would temporarily suspend certain regulations to speed up planning and permit procedures for investments in energy, decarbonisation, digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence and defence. Politico reports that it is not yet known which rules would be affected. On reporting, the three leaders want fewer publication obligations, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and a reversal of the burden of proof, so that the EU would have to show a reporting requirement is indispensable. Ansa's account of the letter lists three core proposals: faster investment in priority areas, a brake on new bureaucratic burdens and a general reduction in EU reporting duties. The letter also calls for further simplification packages and says the aim is to prevent lasting losses of industrial capacity.

Earlier demands for a regulatory pause

Germany, Austria and 11 other EU countries, 13 in total, had earlier asked the European Commission to simplify existing rules, arguing that excess regulation hurts business and reduces Europe's competitiveness. Their paper proposed a "year of implementation and consolidation", a temporary regulatory pause to ease the load on small and medium businesses, and a review of the entire EU legal body. Deutsche Welle cites the Commission's output in 2025: 123 directives and regulations initiated, more than 1,000 mostly technical legal acts adopted, and only 25 impact assessments prepared. Deutsche Welle says this means the Commission often drafts legislation without a cost-benefit calculation for 30 million companies and 450 million residents.

Energy costs and the summit agenda

The initiative is tied to the debate over high energy prices, which weigh on European industry. The 27 heads of state and government meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, 15 and 16 October. According to the entourage of António Costa, competitiveness will be the first topic, including an assessment of progress on the "One Europe, One Market" roadmap adopted in spring. Other agenda items are energy prices, macroeconomic imbalances between the EU and China, the long-term EU budget and support for Ukraine. Onet notes that the proposals were first formulated in March, after a summit on European competitiveness, and that they come as the EU's industrial sector shows worsening signals. Belgium's particularly open economy is directly affected by these issues.