The future of Europe: rebalancing ecology, economics and ethics
Europe needs a new eco-social paradigm if it is to ward off the populist sirens and offer a positive vision for the continent.
Politics
Social Europe is an award-winning digital media publisher driven by the core values of freedom, sustainability, and equality. These principles guide our exploration of society’s most pressing challenges. This archive page curates Social Europe articles focused on political issues, offering a rich resource for innovative thinking and informed debate.
The new Spanish minimum wage
Raising wage floors is one way to reduce inequality and stimulate recovery in Europe. A big uplift in the Spanish minimum wage this year provides a test bed.
A defeat for the populist right isn’t always a win for the social-democratic left
The populist right and the social-democratic left may contest for the support of the popular classes but, Sheri Berman argues, it’s not a simple zero-sum game.
Austria’s smoking gun: Strache, ‘Ibiza-gate’ and ‘Saint’ Sebastian
Even such huge scandals, which lead to the dissolution of a government, resignation of a vice-chancellor and the disclosure of massive corruption, might conclude with more of the same.
Europeanisation from below: still time for another Europe?
In the latest contribution to our ‘Europe2025’ series, Donatella della Porta argues that it has become increasingly difficult for social movements to envision another Europe from below.
Public discourse in the populist age—a trade-union perspective
Winning the battle against the populists means foregrounding and addressing social inequalities, not presuming political liberalism monopolises the alternative.
Turning the tide on violence and harassment at work
The #MeToo movement raised global awareness about the experience of harassment at work—now we have a potentially far-reaching ILO convention to combat the phenomenon.
Creating social legitimacy in the EU
The EU will only survive long-term if it builds its future agenda on broad public support through open dialogue and innovative consultation.
Social democrats and their allies—where now after the elections?
Close scrutiny of the European Parliament and recent national elections belies a simple story of long-run decline for social democrats. A progressive programme is key to revival.
EU complicit in criminalising search and rescue
The arrest of the captain of an NGO rescue ship operating in the Mediterranean highlights the EU’s inaction in the face of Italy’s increasingly hostile agenda.
Time for postcapitalism
Paul Mason continues his sketch of a postcapitalist world by drawing out its implications for something in increasingly short supply—time.
Is there a revival of the Socialist Party in Spain?
The April general election in Spain was certainly a step forward for the Socialist Party. But that was only a recovery from its ‘third way’ step back.
Social justice in the Treaty of Versailles: a very brief history
The centenary of the Treaty of Versailles should remind us how closely it connected the fragile promise of peace to the quest for social justice.
Young, educated and jobless
A decade after the onset of the global crisis, youth unemployment remains high in many industrialised countries. But it’s not an act of nature.
The far-right international is here—when will the left wake up?
The political forces most hostile to European integration are also the only ones to have formulated a common vision for Europe.
Europe’s future: democracy and equality should come first
In our ‘Europe2025’ series, Jan Zielonka offers a vision of a normative, not a technocratic, Europe, driven by the values of democracy and equality.
Facebook’s Libra must be stopped
After years of disregarding privacy, exploiting user data and failing to control its platform, Facebook has unveiled a cryptocurrency and payment system that could take down the entire global economy.