Engaging Europe.
| Author | Wilder, Cleo |
| Position | Editorial - European economy - Editorial |
Writing in the Guardian earlier this year, Ulrich Beck was emphatic about the central place of Europe in any progressive political response to the economic crisis:
In the world risk society, faced with the menacing aggregation of global problems that resist national solutions, nation-states left to their own devices are powerless, incapable of exercising sovereignty. The pooled sovereignty of the EU provides the only hope for every nation and every citizen to live in freedom and peace. Those who harm the union harm themselves. (Beck, 2009) The present issue of Renewal takes up this challenge. The crisis underlines that it is time to move the debate on from 'why Europe?' to 'how Europe?' Principally, how can we harness the opportunities presented by our membership of the European Union to create a new society that is 'secure, green and fair'? (Cruddas and Nahles, 2009).
There is after all a natural affinity between social democracy and the European project, which share the same basic principles: that we have a responsibility towards each other; that we achieve more collectively than we do individually; and that we aspire to unity without sacrificing diversity. Consider these examples of what the Union actually does, or has the potential to do:
* The single currency: the Euro is more than just an economic innovation, it is a highly visible and practical every day demonstration of the value of the Union. There is undoubtedly a unifying pull when all Eurozone citizens carry the same coins in their pockets. Now rivalling the dollar as an international reserve currency, it also has the potential to serve as a powerful lever of progressive economic policy, both within Europe and beyond.
* Social protection: as free market commentator Martin Wolf has noted with dismay, 'Much of the action of the EU has, hitherto, been liberalising. But most of the liberalisation of EU internal markets has now occurred. Over the past one-and-a-half decades ... the notion of "social Europe" has become more entrenched. What has been needed for this purpose is the operation of the EU as a cartel of governments aiming to curb the impact of markets upon them and their citizens' (Wolf, 2004).
* Wealth re-distribution: The Euromemorandum group's proposals (outlined in this issue) for raising EU expenditure to 5 per cent of GDP by enabling the Union to levy eco-taxes and taxes on financial transactions open up a world of possibilities. As Jon Cruddas and Andrea Nahles argue, cooperation between member-states over taxation also reduces the scope for evasion and competitive tax-cutting (Cruddas and Nahles, 2009, 14).
* Financial regulation: as the Euromemorandum Group argue, the EU offers a critical point of leverage over the financial services industry. As Poul Nyrup Rasmussen says in this issue, the European left has been pushing for a tougher approach for years; now, the momentum building behind his own proposals could pose a real challenge to interests who have hitherto seemed untouchable (Walsh, 2009).
* Poverty reduction: 79 million Europeans live in relative poverty. The European Network Against Poverty has proposed Europe-wide targets for poverty reduction (EAPN, 2009) and trade unions and academics have long called for a European living wage policy. This could take the form of using the Open Method of Co-ordination to oblige member states to increase minimum wages to a level corresponding to at least 50 per cent of national average income.
* Job creation: the EU unemployment rate is expected to rise above 10 per cent this year, the highest since the Second World War. Co-ordinated fiscal stimulus combined with collaboration on regulatory and industrial measures to channel new economic activity into strategic and sustainable forms of production and technology development could do far more than any action by individual member states.
* Research, development and innovation: Whether its stem cell research or unlocking the secrets of the big bang, the pooled expertise and funding that the EU can bring together creates a far greater potential for innovation than any single member state could achieve on its own.
* Joint ventures: These are not only valuable for 'big business' like the pan-European aircraft manufacturer Airbus, but also for a range of actors including SMEs, service providers, NGO and research networks--creating both a bigger pie and more beneficiaries.
* Education: Particularly in higher education, the EU can facilitate greater mobility of both students and academics through a more structured programme of exchanges, the mutual recognition of degrees, and a 'Eurogrant' accessible to all students and academics to enable a term abroad as an essential component of all...
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