Euro leaders aim to build on power of Internet

European leaders have agreed major reforms in the technology revolution which will create 20 million new jobs and, according to Tony Blair, will remove barriers to innovation and enterprise.

Tony Blair and other European leaders predicted that the information revolution would bring an average economic growth of three per cent in the future - and stressed the need to educate young people to meet the need for high technology skills.

Tony Blair 'enthusiastically' led other European leaders in setting the agenda for the development of the information revolution during the EU summit in Lisbon with the possibility of 20 million jobs in Europe in a decade. He hailed the reforms as a 'sea change in EU economic thinking'.

Mr Blair said: "Many of our citizens who are without work will get work as a result of what we have agreed. It will open the door to the prospect of full employment in our countries. Twenty million jobs is a realistic figure.

"Many of the barriers to innovation and enterprise which get in the way of small businesses thriving and prospering will be removed."

Mr Blair wants to drive forward the knowledge-based economy to meet the standards set by the US. He said: "In my view this is not just a new direction but a specific set of measures and it's about modernising EU social policy, moving it away from a narrow focus on employment rights".

The EU summit's plan includes:

* to provide all schools with internet access by the end of 2001;

*liberalisation of Europe's telecommunications;

*the development of a European-wide database on jobs and learning opportunities;

*the introduction of a European diploma for basic IT skills

*encouraging competition, to bring down the costs of using the Internet;

*teaching the teachers to be computer literate by 2002.