Brussels, 05/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - The Left, which is on a bit of an upswing at the moment, following the local elections in Italy, the regional elections in Germany, the general election in Denmark and the senatorial elections in France, must put the European political project, with a common economic policy, an energy policy and common management of immigration (as part of the response to the problems that go along with an ageing population) at the centre of its political platform. That is the substance of the message delivered in Brussels on Monday 3 October by a number of leading figures, setting out what they hope will be a winning strategy for European Social Democracy.
“More Europe, a stronger political Europe and new growth to win the battle over debt, and a united Europe.” These are, according to former Italian prime minister Massimo D'Alema, some of the ideas to be taken up by the Left to change Europe. D'Alema, who also heads the Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS), said: “We could be on the verge of political change in Europe”. This could, indeed, alter the face of the European Union, he said.
He argued for a progressive grouping with alliances between Socialists, Greens, left-leaning Liberals and left-leaning Christians. He suggested that economic crisis comes from inequality. At the heart of the crisis, there is a fall in overall demand because workers and the middle classes everywhere have less money to spend. “It is the growth of inequality which is the obstacle to economic growth”, he postulated. The Right, he said, had demonstrated its inability to deal with the economic, social, cultural and political crisis. The Right is unable to give the people of Europe prospects of development, growth, employment and hope. He said that the Right was still locked into the politics of fear without giving Europe fresh prospects.
Former Danish prime minister and President of the Party of European Socialists Poul Nyrup Rasmussen roundly criticised the instruments currently being used by Conservative governments to implement austerity measures. The assertions from German, Chancellor Angela Merkel on the austerity plans put in place in Greece, Spain, Italy and elsewhere are totally lacking in any European dimension, Rasmussen said. He added that austerity plans uncoordinated at EU level “have a double effect”: at national level and at European level, as the economies of the EU countries are interdependent. The intergovernmental methods used during the crisis have paved the way for new populism - hence the desire on the part of Europe's Left to develop genuinely European instruments, he went on, such as eurobonds, or the financial transaction tax.
“Next Left - Towards a new strategy”, the result of an initiative launched after the 2009 European elections which were disastrous for the Left, was presented by former Austrian chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer and sets out how to relaunch the progressive movement. While the Right may advocate a return to the national, or regional, dimension (a trend hardened by the rise of extreme right-wing parties), “the renaissance of progressivism is inseparable from the revitalisation of Europe. This has to be seen at one and the same time as an idealistic concept, a political mission and a civic project”, he said. For that reason, a new alliance of the centre-left had to be launched, incorporating environmentalists who are making their voices heard ever more loudly and movements from civil society. This alliance must place the political union of Europe at the heart of its vision, argued Gusenbauer, who heads the Next Left research programme.
Paul Magnette, Belgian Federal Minister for Climate and Energy, spoke of European Socialist ideas which are gaining ground: the financial transaction tax, the idea of a global climate pact which respects “historic justice” between the various categories of states (industrialised, emerging, developing) and fair trade. The limits and negative impact of free trade must be condemned without falling into protectionist discourse, he said. A fourth idea is that of joint development: in the face of migration, repression is not a solution, and migration, which is necessary, has to be regulated. “With these four pillars, we have what is needed for comprehensive social democratic thinking which is coherent, realistic and increasingly rooted in representative bodies”, he said.
Isabelle Durant (Greens/EFA, Belgium) made clear: “We have to fundamentally change our economies to make them more sustainable environmentally and in terms of energy costs”. She said she hoped that alliances would be formed between environmentalists and social democrats on the creation of a European constituency (voters would have two ballot papers, the first national and the second with a list of European candidates) to elect “European figures, not the sum of national figures”. This European constituency is a prerequisite for the installation of any election for the president of the European Commission, Durant opined. She acknowledged, however, that the idea did not have majority support in the European Parliament for the moment.
Has Barroso turned left? For those mentioned above, José Manuel Barroso has taken on a number of ideas of the Left (financial transaction tax, eurobonds and others) but falls far short in terms of ambition, particularly on the financial transaction tax. According to Magnette, Barroso has never had any political ideas of his own. “Barroso is a barometer. If he is supporting left-wing political proposals, it means the wind is changing.” (LC/transl.rt)