The economic and financial crisis has thrown to the fore tensions between the European Union’s (EU) so-called “newcomers” and their more established counterparts. Participants, including EU Commissioner for Regional Policy, Johannes Hahn, came together for the Friends of Europe and European Development Platform roundtable, “The EU’s ‘newcomers’ weigh the costs and benefits” to discuss both the positive and negative effects the ‘big bang’ expansion of 2004 and subsequent enlargement to Romania and Bulgaria in 2007 have had on individual states and the bloc as a whole.

Discussing the topic of whether “the EU’s troubled ‘convergence’ debate” would mean greater divergence between member states, participants agreed that the increasing tendency to pit “old” against “new” is particularly unhelpful in the quest for greater cohesion and integration. The rise in nationalism and protectionist measures by the EU’s more powerful members were also highlighted as detrimental to solidarity.

Faced with rising public deficits and the threat of sovereign default, there has been a renewed impetus for fiscal consolidation throughout the EU. The recent adoption of the Berlin-inspired Euro plus pact by the European Council in March is seen as “a step in the right direction” towards greater economic policy coordination and improved competitiveness, but it was widely agreed that it is no silver bullet to the very real challenges the EU is facing.

With negotiations on the next Multiannual Financial Framework, which locks in the EU’s priorities for 2014-2020, getting underway this year, the EU budget was the topic of much discussion during the course of the afternoon. Facing tough austerity measures at home, the pressures on the budget are significant. And given the preference of certain member states towards a tightening of the funds available, it is important to look at how to get the most value out of every euro spent.

To this end, several discussants highlighted the important role cohesion policy plays in generating economic growth, providing genuine added value for both donors and recipients alike. According to Hahn, cohesion policy will play a central role in enabling the EU to deliver the objectives of its 2020 strategy: sustainable and inclusive growth that delivers high levels of employment, productivity and social cohesion. (Read the Commissioner's speech.)

Considering the current stand-off over the accession of the bloc’s newest members to the Schengen zone, discussants also wondered whether these tensions were “symptoms of a wider malaise”. Several participants spoke of “double standards” when it comes to application of the Schengen criteria, arguing that there is one rule for candidates and another for existing members. The ability to effectively deal with organised crime and corruption was also raised as a key component in the Schengen discussions, although it was argued that this is not, and should not be, one of the criteria for admission.

Apparent waning enthusiasm for EU integration and enlargement, as well as resurgent nationalism suggest that the ongoing Schengen dispute is, indeed, part of a much bigger picture. Concerned about a massive influx of migrant workers following the 2004 and 2007 expansions, several governments put in place restrictions on the number and type of workers who would be admitted from new member states. Although not strictly linked to the Schengen debate, this is nevertheless an important factor in the continued refusal by Paris and Berlin to approve Romania and Bulgaria’s membership.

Reflecting on what has been achieved since the EU’s inception, Friends of Europe’s Secretary General Giles Merritt concluded by arguing that enlargement has been the single greatest success story, greater even than the creation of the single market. However, he questioned whether the big bang expansion of 2004 and the subsequent enlargement of 2007 was the most suitable means of achieving greater EU unity or whether, in fact, it had had the opposite effect. “We swallowed the big bang whole,” he said. “But we’re still having some trouble digesting it.”