Home The intolerable persistence of the EU’s economic and political crises

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The monthly bulletin of LEAP (European Laboratory of Political Anticipation) - 15 Sep 2024

The intolerable persistence of the EU’s economic and political crises

Copyright@chrisleboutillier

The European Union is facing a series of economic and political crises that threaten to shatter its model. Between the rise of nationalism, economic weakness and the failure of monetary policy, the EU seems to be out of breath. Could this be the very end of the United Europe?

Isn’t it time to acknowledge that the EU’s legislative and political straitjacket is stifling the continent’s economies? Once promising and innovative, the EU’s political model is now proving sclerotic, too cumbersome and not nimble enough to adapt to a world that is changing faster than ever. Admittedly, legislation has been one of the EU’s assets in the world. However, if it gets into direct contradiction with the reality experienced by companies, it undermines consumption and ultimately makes the European market less attractive. Without an attractive market, no country, no company in the world will take the trouble to adapt its regulations to European directives. And without an attractive market, the EU loses its  asset number 1.

This lack of dynamism and economic attractiveness is having brutal repercussions on the politics of the EU and its member states. It is largely responsible for the rise of nationalism and far-right parties which, while no longer as anti-European as in the past, have a very different project for political Europe. This political trend can be seen first and foremost in immigration-related issues. As the economies of member states are no longer dynamic, they are no longer able to integrate immigrant populations. For the time being, this rejection of immigration seems insurmountable. Since 2008, economic crises have piled up without being resolved, to the point of becoming unsustainable. To understand them and anticipate their outcomes, we first need to review them, which is the purpose of the economic panorama we offer here.

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