Convergence in living standards across regions and countries was not a policy goal at the early stages of the Union’s existence as the six founding countries had a similar level of economic development. However, convergence became a policy goal for two reasons. First, the benefits of economic integration may be unevenly distributed across countries and/or regions (Box 5.1). Second, the successive waves of enlargement involved countries and regions whose per-capita income was far below the average. The swift catch-up in living standards became a prominent policy goal. And it will remain one, with the recent accession of 10 new ...