Stresses the importance of stable and cost-effective renewable support schemes for long-term investment that remain responsive and adaptable in the short term and are tailored to national needs and circumstances, allowing gradual phasing-out of subsidies for mature renewable technologies; welcomes the fact that a number of renewable energy technologies are rapidly becoming cost-competitive with conventional forms of generation; stresses that the energy transition hinges upon the transparency, consistency and continuity of legal, financial and regulatory frameworks with a view to strengthening i ...[+++]nvestor confidence; regrets retroactive changes to renewable support schemes that alter the return on investments already made; calls on the Member States to always announce any renewable support scheme adjustments and consult stakeholders widely well in advance; calls on the Commission to check the compatibility of national support schemes with the European Commission Guidance in order to avoid any unnecessary delay in their implementation and minimise market distortions.

These priority areas can both contribute to economic recovery in the short- and medium-term and have a significant impact on our longer-term growth.

The curve as a whole has, at the short end, come in since the start of the year, since January, which has had an impact, and we've had pass-through both into the prime rate, into bankers' acceptances, which are very important short-term financing for corporations, and into mortgages steadily, as we've gone through this year.

Achieving these objectives in the short term requires a large-scale research effort to encourage the deployment of technologies already under development and to help promote changes in energy demand patterns and consumption behaviour by improving energy efficiency and integrating renewable energy into the energy system.

We believe that policies must provide short-term, medium-term and long-term returns on investment.

That's a real risk, particularly if you look at the compensation packages of banks that are focused largely on quarterly or annual returns and that sort of thing; it's the short-term returns.