EU closer to reaching job goals, think-tanks say

Two independent studies suggest the EU is getting closer to its job and growth targets although productivity and spending on research remain problematic, with Denmark and the Netherlands praised as "heroes" and Poland and Greece as "villains" of the EU's reform efforts.

"The European economy is better prepared for global competition than it was in 2000," argues the 2007 Lisbon scoreboard published by the London-based Centre for European Reform.

The report analyses the EU's progres...