debating progressive politics in Europe and beyond
At the end of next June the European Council summit will debate a proposal to reform the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) based on the roadmap approved last December. The debate and decisions adopted will discuss the worst crisis faced by the EU since its birth in 1957. The nature of this crisis is, at [...]
Angela Merkel’s European policy has so far not succeeded in solving the Eurozone crisis and has been widely criticised across Europe. The recent Italian election has again shown the level of discontent with Europe’s political direction. If you are part of the next German government what would you like to change in the German European policy approach? [...]
Angela Merkel’s European policy has so far not succeeded in solving the Eurozone crisis and has been widely criticised across Europe. If you become the next German Chancellor, what would you change in the German European policy approach? Would you change the current austerity policy that is widely viewed as the main reason for Europe’s [...]
This morning I was on CNBC’s Squawk Box Europe to discuss the upcoming German election and the state of the German and European economies. This was a different format from the usual ‘presenter interviews expert’ and I quite enjoyed this, also because there was time to have a discussion and get more out than just [...]
2013 is now upon us and when it comes to German politics it is already clear what the climax of this year will be: the federal elections in September. As 2012 drew to a close, the election campaign was already well under way. But rather than focusing on the policies needed to overcome the many [...]
The risks facing the eurozone have been reduced since the summer, when a Greek exit looked imminent and borrowing costs for Spain and Italy reached new and unsustainable heights. But, while financial strains have since eased, economic conditions on the eurozone’s periphery remain shaky. Several factors account for the reduction in risks. For starters, the [...]
For three years the Financial Times Deutschland (FTD) offered the Chancellor its carefully considered suggestions for managing the crisis. And now the paper is folding, as a result of her failure to implement our recommendations in a timely manner. How unfair is that? Once it became clear that the days of the FTD were numbered, [...]
A general principle of the Age of Enlightenment is that people shall chose those who govern them through a democratic process. Franklin D Roosevelt, the greatest US president after Lincoln, summarized this principle: Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are [...]
Greece’s fate is decided. It will be only a question of time until the country leaves the Eurozone, in an orderly or an disorderly manner. The newly enthroned three party coalition will run into the political problem created by the voters who expressed their wish to stay inside the Eurozone and simultaneously getting relieve of [...]
Consider the following scenario. After a victory by the left-wing Syriza party, Greece’s new government announces that it wants to renegotiate the terms of its agreement with the International Monetary Fund and the European Union. German Chancellor Angela Merkel sticks to her guns and says that Greece must abide by the existing conditions. Fearing that [...]
This crisis has been good for Germany. Unemployment is at its lowest level since unification, real wages are going up after a decade of stagnation, up to now exports are booming, tax revenues are plentiful, and hence a public deficit of just 1% – well below the Maastricht criteria – was possible without any major [...]
Europe is on the move; new thinking is emerging among social democrats. This is what I discovered at the meeting on the Renaissance of Europe organized by four important think tanks, FEPS, Fondation Jean Jaures, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Italianieuropei in Paris on 16-17 March. Social democrats do not want to see Europe die. In [...]
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