The Future Of Europe – A Space For The Social Policy Avant-Garde
On March 1 2017, the European Commission set out a White Paper on the Future of Europe. There was none of the fierce debate that
American Democracy Sold To The Highest Bidder
Aristotle measured the quality of democracy by the extent to which politics constrains the economically powerful, allowing the preferences of the landless to be reflected
Retooling Social Europe Via Charters Of Rights
The European Union’s fundamental goal, projected in the Lisbon Treaty, was to create a “social market economy” with a clear commitment to full employment, social
Davos Of The Many For The Few
It is easy to dismiss Davos as nothing more than a talkfest among greedy CEOs, cheerful philanthropists and photogenic celebrity activists. Yet this narrative –
European Social Democracy Extinct?
“In a constitutional state, the true ruler is the voter”, go the words of Ferdinand Lassalle, the champion of workers and intellectual force behind European
Boosting Domestic Demand And Investments Is Good For Germany – And The Eurozone
The outcome of the first negotiation package agreed between CDU/CSU and SPD needs to become more precise before being approved by their congresses. There is
Growth Is Back! So What?
Reports of the death of growth have been greatly exaggerated. As the IMF noted last month, the world enjoyed in 2017 the “broadest cyclical upswing
Where Do We Stand With “More And Better” Jobs In Europe?
The European Union has gone a long way since the Lisbon Strategy of 2000 with its “more and better jobs” objective. In parallel with the
The Neoliberal Roots Of The New Austrian Right-Wing Government
Soon after the newly elected Austrian government was formed as a coalition of the conservatives and the far right in December 2017, an appeal to
Why Greece Could Have Returned To Financial Markets Much Earlier
A few weeks ago Athens persuaded private holders of about €30 billion in Greek debt to swap short maturity bonds for five new ones of
Austerity: From Outrage To Progressive Alternatives
Social democracy in Europe is not in good shape. Perhaps the main reason for social democratic parties losing support has been their perceived association with
Why The European Parliament’s ‘Democratic Deficit’ Is Unfounded
Critiques of EU democracy are currently high on the public agenda, and are by no means only the prerogative of extreme nationalists. Yanis Varoufakis has called
In Defence Of Economic Populism
Populists abhor restraints on the political executive. Since they claim to represent “the people” writ large, they regard limits on their exercise of power as
Racing The Machine
Dispelling anxiety about robots has become a major preoccupation of business apologetics. The commonsense – and far from foolish – view is that the more
Instability, Not Productivity, Is The Economic Problem
There is currently a big debate about productivity growth. Is it as slow as it has been measured or have changes in the economy led
When Welfare Sabotages Lives
As Christmas approached last year, the United Kingdom accelerated the rollout of a social security scheme only Ebenezer Scrooge could have loved. The “universal credit”
Can Movement Politics Renew European Democracy?
Many people expected the big political story of 2017 to be about the triumph of populism in Europe. But things didn’t turn out that way.