The first decade of the 21st century has certainly not been brilliant for Europe. Ten years to attain the Lisbon Treaty, ten years to touch, but not reach, the objectives of growth, innovation and productivity set in 2000 in Lisbon, ten years in which intergovernmental coordination has triumphed over integrationist aspirations. Meanwhile, the world's economic centre of gravity has shifted towards Asia and the crisis has led to the mainstays of the single market and economic and monetary union to be questioned once more. As a corollary to this far from rosy prospect, spiralling national debt and high levels of unemployment risk blocking growth over the coming years. We can only be thankful that Van Rompuy has made it his first initiative as head of the EU to summon a meeting of the economic strategy. Equally positive is the fact that Spain's Zapatero, the current president-by-rota, has spoken of the need for greater “economic union”. It is time to review the Lisbon Strategy, and to try to shape a genuine European strategy for dealing with globalization. The “EU 2020” agenda proposed by the Barroso commission is not adequate, since it resembles too closely the totally ineffective 2000 version. What are the current community-level priorities? Internally, to reboot the single market in the energy sector and to draw the right conclusions form the crisis of economic government, at least as far as the eurozone is concerned. Externally, to take the EU to the level of the major powers, pushing ahead with the reform of the key institutions of world governance. Europe must understand that the time for completing these reforms is almost up.
Search Map by Country
Search a Country Map selecting the following parameters.
