Henning Meyer
Henning Meyer is Head of the European Programme at the Global Policy Institute (London Metropolitan University) and Editor of Social Europe Journal. Henning has also written opinion editorials for newspapers such as The Guardian, Handelsblatt and DIE ZEIT.
New Labour hasn’t learned anything
Peter Mandelson and Tony Blair are getting ready to make interventions in the Labour leadership contest culminating in the next few weeks. And their main reason to support one candidate over the other seems whether they remain as much New Labour as possible. Talking about Ed Miliband Mandelson had this to say: “I think that [...]
Europeans want Economic Governance
There we have it: Europeans want economic governance mechanisms for Europe the new Eurobarometer found out. 75% of Europeans think that stronger coordination of economic and financial policies among EU Member States would be effective in fighting the economic crisis, according to the Spring 2010 Eurobarometer, the bi-annual opinion poll organised by the EU This [...]
End Legal Loan Sharking
It is nice to see that Compass has decided to campaign for an end legal loan sharking. I have blogged about this particular issue about a year ago and also suggested at a FEPS meeting that this is something that should be banned everywhere the single market. Britain is particularly bad for this sort of [...]
Why the European Union is Dying
Ok, the headline is exaggerating the problems of the EU and I certainly don’t want it to die. But the headline is meant to attract your attention to a very real issue that has the potential to send the Union into terminal decline: the complete lack of any European identity or ambition of any of Europe’s political leaders. Gary [...]
Intellectual Tony Judt dies after long Illness
The eminent historian and intellectual Tony Judt has died after a two-year long fight against a severe illness. Admirably, he continued to lecture and write even though his condition had forced progressing paralysis upon him. His last book “Ill fares the Land”, and his New York Review of Books article based on his final work, are very [...]
Where are the European Billionaires who donate the Majority of their Wealth?
Ok, there is an argument to be made about how and why some of these US billionaires who have now pledged to give the majority of their personal wealth to charity have become so rich. But on a personal level it is a remarkable move to make and given the sums involved in this unprecedented [...]
European Economic Governance Madness
Euractiv reported about a new Franco-German declaration to the task force charged with working up a mechanism of economic governance for the EU/Eurozone. Completely ignorant about the ongoing debates about how counterproductive early fiscal austerity could be the document states: Member States would be expected to enact national laws that formalise the public finance recovery [...]
Would you ban the Burka?
The Pew Global Attitudes Project has recently published a very interesting piece of research investigating attitudes towards the full Islamic veil. The results show a remarkable difference between Europeans and US citizens. Even though Damian Green, the UK immigration minister, says a ban of the Burka would be “un-British” the vast majority of Brits seem [...]
Handling Crisis Economics – Where is the European Debate?
I have been following the debates on crisis economics for quite some time now. Especially the discussion about austerity packages and fiscal consolidation versus a more expansionary fiscal policy to make sure the fragile economic recovery is not choked off is one of the key debates of our time. Get it wrong and millions of [...]
European Social Democrats push for Citizens Initiative on Financial Transaction Tax
The German SPD and Austrian SPOE announced yesterday that they intend to use the new Citizens Initiative instrument to campaign for a Europe-wide financial transaction tax if the predominantly conservative EU governments do not introduce such a levy until the autumn. SPD Chairman Sigmar Gabriel and the Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann announced that they would [...]
Where now for the Eurozone?
Yesterday evening I commented on the current talks of the Eurozone finance ministers on Al Jazeera International. Watch below what I had to say.
The British Labour Party has a great Opportunity!
Ok, one day after a party was removed from office after 13 years it might not seem to be the time to talk about opportunities. But if you look at the fundamentals, the British Labour party has a great opportunity to regroup and go for office again in the near future. Social democratic parties have [...]
