The State of Europe: Re-thinking the European project

The State of Europe is dominated by the financial crisis in the eurozone and this was reflected in Friends of Europe’s annual State of Europe roundtable, which brought together ministers and EU Commissioners, members of the national and European Parliaments, senior policymakers, business leaders and opinion-formers for a no-holds-barred discussion on prospects for rethinking the European “project”. The discussion served to highlight the complexities of the issues and the disagreements and divisions on how to deal with the problems.

José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, outlined what needs to be done – decisive action in Greece, beefing up the tools of the Euro area, strengthening the banking system, improving economic governance and implementing the single market agenda. However, the EU still struggles with its lack of connection to voters and its lack of legitimacy. This was not so much of a problem when it appeared to be creating win-win situations for its citizens, but today when that equation looks more like lose-lose, it is more of an issue. Making the Commission more accountable is one answer – it would make people feel they have a say in who runs Europe as well as increasing understanding about the issues.

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