MAY 2014 the Turning Point for European Democracy?
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QueriesSummer 2014 / Issue 4 / €5.90 THE EUROPEAN PROGRESSIVE MAGAZINE COLUMN JOSEPH STIGLITZ MY EUROPE LULA MAY 2014 The turning point for European democracy? 28 analyses from 28 countries About Queries Isaac Newton’s famous book “Opticks” concludes with a set of “Queries.” These “Queries” are not questions in the ordinary sense, but rather rhetorical questions intended to stimulate thinking. This was Newton’s mode of explaining “by query.” Made with the financial support of the European Parliament No 4 / Summer 2014 / CPPAP 0416 U 92285 – ISSN 2032-9113 – Queries is the scientific magazine of the Foundation for European Progressive Studies. The Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS) is the first progressive political foundation established at the European level. Created in 2007 and co-financed by the European Parliament, it aims at establishing an intellectual crossroad between social democracy and the European project Publisher: FEPS – Foundation for European Progressive Studies. First published in Belgium 2012/2013 Magazine Editor of Queries: Dr. Ernst Stetter (Secretary General – FEPS) Editor-in-Chief: Alain Bloëdt Associate Editor-in-Chief: Olivier Breton Editorial Committee: Charlotte Billingham, Giovanni Cozzi, David Kitching, Ania Skrzypek, Judit Tanczos Journalists: Iulia Badea-Guéritée, Cécile Calla, Lorenzo Consoli, Sam Davies, Jacques Docquiert, Trevor Huggins, Moritz Pfeifer, Charlotte Saliou, Eric Sundström, Ian Willoughby Cover Illustration: Antoine Corbineau Design & Production: All Contents, France Translation: Semantis Photo Credits (Pages 6-7): DR, Félix Bernad, IRIS, European Union 2014 - EP, Ricardo Stuckert/Instituto Lula, Cédric Méravilles, Katherine Roberts, Policy Network, SPD/Marco Urban, VoteWatch Europe, Frédéric Latinis, FEPS, Socialdemokraterna, Archive of the Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies, foto-dd.com, Manfred Esser, Katsumi Saiki - Michael Holmes, Committee of the Regions, University of Leicester – Copyright © FEPS – Foundation for European Progressive Studies. 2 QUERIES — Summer 2014 THE TURNING POINT of May 2014 by Massimo D’Alema, FEPS President, former Prime Minister of Italy or the first time since the first European by the EPP and the liberals. The goal shall be drawing the Euro- elections in 1979, the declining trend of pean people closer to the EU, both by increasing the transparen- the turnout has reverted. Yet, 43.09% is cy of the European processes and actively involving the citizens, still a very unsatisfactory result. Moreover, and by changing the EU policies, which shall be much more this slight increase of the turnout level (only by growth-oriented than they have been so far. In other words, Europe F 0.9 percentage points) is to be ascribed to the needs more than discussions about oilcans, cucumber curves and populist and anti-European movements and parties, which have chlorinated chickens! An attractive Union has to concentrate conquered the support of electors that, most probably, would on attractive concepts that convince the citizens and otherwise have swelled the ranks of the abstainers! hence the voters. If we compare the general features of the new assembly with the Against this backdrop, the socialists’ condition is particularly del- one elected in 2009, two main differences stand out. While five icate. Despite the PES initiative of the Top candidate which has years ago the conservative forces clearly outnumbered the pro- been followed by the major parties in the European Parliament, gressive ones, today these two blocs are substantially equivalent. despite the tremendous EU campaign of Martin Schulz who The second element concerns the significant presence of Euro- knocked the doors across Europe with many thousands of PES sceptic parties, which can count on more than 120 MEPs. The activists, despite a major loss of 53 seats, conservatives won. conclusion seems obvious: the European electors have punished From its 2nd position, it was difficult for the PES and Martin Schulz those parties that have been identified with the austerity policies to ask for the leadership of the Commission. Nevertheless, the and with the current management of the European Union. There- social-democrats cannot purely play the role of the op- fore, it has to be said that the Party of European Socialists position within the European Parliament, considering (PES) as a whole has not been perceived as a strong and that now the progressive governments make up a signif- convincing alternative. icant share of the European Council and that in the Eu- ropean Parliament no other majority is possible. This anti-European attitude is not only to be attributed to the social crisis and the rejection of austerity, but also, particularly in Additionally, the progressive movement should further challenge the richest countries, to the nationalist retrenchment, to the hos- the trend and establish European social democracy as the real tility towards immigrants and to the refusal of the principle of driving force for the European Union. The PES initiative of intro- solidarity. Furthermore, taking into consideration the high level of ducing the leading candidates in 2009 – to which FEPS contrib- abstaining, which concerns the largest part of the European elec- uted – was a substantial step forward towards more democracy. torate, it is necessary to acknowledge that in the member states The next step should be to change the current Europarty system there is a deep and widespread lack of confidence towards po- by offering to their national activists the opportunity to join their litical parties and institutions, particularly the European ones. Europarty, i.e. for progressive activists to join the PES directly. A lack of confidence that is now beyond the mere state of alert. With such new initiative, one can expect that national parties will not be only concerned with EU issues just for the few months Having said this, it is clear that last May electoral results before the European elections but that they will enhance the impose a radical turn. This is something that must be under- debate during the entire legislative term. stood by all the pro-European forces in Europe, and in particular QUERIES — Summer 2014 3 #04 May 2014: the turning point Contents for European democracy? Page 34 © Getty/duescreatius1 © European© Union EP - 2014 INPUT FOCUS P. 36 FOREWORD P. 12 MY VIEW Sir Roger Norrington 10 Observations by FEPS P. 42 ANALYSIS P. 14 ONES TO WATCH Yasmin Fahimi Next Left Jan Hamá ek P. 46 IN NUMBERS with VoteWatch Europe P. 22 ANALYSIS Gerhard Stahl on subsidiarity Comments by Yvan Mayeur P. 51 INQUIRY & Juan Alberto Belloch Austria – Georg Hubmann Belgium – Ariane Fontenelle Bulgaria – Mihail Mirchev P. 28 COLUMN Croatia – Tonči Kursar Joseph Stiglitz on the Eurozone Cyprus – Lefki Panteli Czech Republic – Patrick Eichler Denmark – Kristian Weise Estonia – Jörgen Siil Finland – Mikko Majander France – Gilles Finchelstein Germany – Ernst Hillebrand Greece – Yannis Caloghirou © FEPS Hungary – Tamás Boros Ireland – Nat O’Connor Italy – Michele Prospero P. 30 VISION Latvia – Maris Grinvalds Jan Zalasiewicz & Gunter Pauli Lithuania – Andrius Bielskis on the Anthropocene Luxembourg – Tom Krieps Malta - Aaron Farrugia P.34 INSIGHT Netherlands – Jiska Engelbert André Gerrits on Ukraine Poland – Michał Syska Portugal – Gustavo Cardoso 4 QUERIES — Summer 2014 © Cédric Méravilles © INSPIRATION Romania – Victor Negrescu P.106 MY EUROPE Slovakia – Ľuboš Blaha Lula Slovenia – Sonja Lokar Spain – Juan Moscoso del Prado Hernández Sweden – Eric Sundström United Kingdom – Ivana Bartoletti P. 89 INTERVIEWS Corina Creţu Evelyne Gebhardt Alessia Mosca Javi López Stuckert/Instituto Lula Ricardo © Jytte Guteland P. 110 MEET THE PRESS Kati Piri Dispute over the TTIP P. 94 PORTFOLIO The rise of populism in Europe P. 115 DISCOVERY Musée Soulages P. 120 REPORT Renaissance P. 124 PUBLICATIONS P. 127 ZOOM Italianieuropei P. 128 BOOK REVIEWS P. 131 CARTOON © Ed Thompson Ed © Le Chat by Philippe Geluck QUERIES — Summer 2014 5 CONTRIBUTORS QUERIES #4 Contributors They have contributed to the new Queries debates and thinking. Oriol Bartomeus Juan Alberto Jean-Yves Camus Corina Creţu Board Member of the Belloch Research Fellow at Romanian Member of Fundació Rafael Campalans Mayor of Zaragoza Institute for the European International & Parliament Strategica Relations Luiz Inácio "Lula" da Benoît Decron Patrick Diamond Yasmin Fahimi Silva Chief Curator of the Lecturer in Public General Secretary of Former President of Brazil Musée Soulages Policy at the Queen the German SPD Mary University of London Doru Frantescu Evelyne Gebhardt Philippe Geluck André Gerrits Policy Director & Professor of German Member of the Belgian Cartoonist Co-Founder at European Parliament International Studies VoteWatch Europe at Leiden University 6 QUERIES — Summer 2014 CONTRIBUTORS Jytte Guteland Jan Hamáček Sir Richard Jolly Joan Manuel Swedish Member of the Speaker of the Czech Honorary Professor at Lanfranco Pari European Parliament Parliament's Lower the IDS - University of Policy & Communications House Sussex Manager at VoteWatch Europe Javi López Yvan Mayeur Alessia Mosca Matjaž Nahtigal Spanish Member of the Mayor of Brussels Italian Member of the Associate Professor at European Parliament European Parliament the University of Primorska Sir Roger Gunter Pauli Kati Piri Christophe Sente Norrington Belgian Entrepreneur Dutch Member of the Political Scientist at British conductor & Author European Parliament the Université Libre de Bruxelles Discover the