Social Europe

National Fiscal Flexibility: EU Parliament Plans a Big Step Backwards

I and many others have argued that the basic EU treaties have flexibility to accommodate most social democratic policies such as those in the 2017

Europe, USA, China? Let’s Hear It For The EU

I would like to nominate the average, everyday EU citizen as the “Hero of the Year.” Europeans have been bombarded for nearly a decade by

Nordic Model Survives The Storm

What are the prospects for the Nordic-Baltic region (5+3) in a decidedly unstable international environment? The situation is radically different from what it looked like

More Attention Must Be Given To Europe’s Working Poor

In-work poverty increased during the economic and financial crisis that hit European shores in 2008. By 2014, ten per cent of European workers were at

Europe’s Attackers From Within

Europe finally appears to have moved past its multi-year economic crisis, but it remains unsettled. For every reason for optimism, there always seems to be

Boris Johnson’s Split Allegiances

Boris Johnson’s recent article in the Telegraph, ‘My vision for a bold, thriving Britain enabled by Brexit’, raises a host of troubling issues. Not least,

Hungarian Social Democrats Take Fight To Orban

So, László, thank you very much for being with us to talk about the Hungarian Socialist Party. What is the historical position of the Social

A Way Forward For Catalonia

The “referendum” on Catalonia’s independence, held on October 1, did not end up well for its promoters. It had been declared illegal by the Spanish

Catalonia And Brexit: The Same Nationalism

The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, will not enter the history books as an enlightened leader. However, when in 2014 he had to decide to

Merkel Promises To Listen To The Cold Wind From The East

A very important and instructive lesson that politicians and those in governments, the world over, should learn from the outcome of the latest German elections

Dystopia In America And Britain

Watching the Emmys, where the major awards went to the TV version of Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel “The Handmaid’s Tale”, I was struck by contrasts

East Germans And The Far-Right AfD

Angela Merkel’s immigration policies may be the ticket that propelled the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) into the Bundestag on September 24 with a stunning

The EU: States Or Citizens?

The critical question after Sunday’s Catalan referendum and the violent response of the (Spanish national) police now is: how long will the Catalan people resist

Germany: What Happens Next?

The key question now is: What happens next? After the social democrats have (wisely, I think) opted for a role in the opposition, there will

Euro Enlargement Between Convergence And (De)Financialization

The White Paper on the future of Europe presented five forward scenarios: (1) delivering a positive reform agenda, (2) focusing on the single market, (3)