Over a working lunch, on 24 September, ministers meeting at the Competitiveness Council in Brussels discussed progress in implementing the 2006 Services Directive. The directive aims to ease access for companies wishing to take advantage of the internal market in services. The ministers committed to intensifying efforts ahead of the 31 December 2009 deadline for the directive's implemen ation. Hidden in conclusions on improving the functioning of the internal market, ministers thus call for greater efforts with respect to the implementation and mutual evaluation of legislation, 'points of single contact' and interoperable electronic procedures.rnThe Council also calls on the European Commission and member states to use the opportunity of the entry into force of the Services Directive, as well as other legislation with an impact on the internal market, in order to boost awareness of the benefits and opportunities of the internal market.
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