Euro relationships under strain

Quote

"We are called to bethink ourselves of the Christian basics of Europe by forming a democratic model of governance which through reconciliation develops into a ‘community of peoples’ in freedom, equality, solidarity and peace and which is deeply rooted in Christian basic values.”  Robert Schuman (one of the founding fathers of the European community; 1958)

News

Yesterday the Spanish parliament voted in favour of €15 billion of austerity measures – but by just one vote.  European finance ministers last week agreed that tougher sanctions were needed for member states who are slow to bring government deficits back under control – in order to prevent the Greek financial crisis from spreading.

The single European currency is effectively an inter-country relational experiment.  For 60 years the EU (helped greatly by NATO) has succeeded in its goal of making war inconceivable among the member states.  However, the decision to form a monetary union in the 1990s has been pushing countries towards ever closer political union – far beyond what the founders such as Schuman envisioned.   

When member states gave up their independent currencies a decade ago, they were placing immense trust in other Eurozone governments to keep spending in check.  The present crisis exposes differences in values between member states over financial prudence and puts to the test the strength of the relationship binding them to a common currency.  It’s time to count the cost: what price must be paid for the Eurozone to hold together, both financially and in terms of handing over more political and economic independence to an emerging European government?

Read on...

Paul Mills and Michael Schluter wrote a paper in 1998 weighing up the pros and cons of joining the euro from a Christian perspective.  To find out what their conclusion was, and to see if their predictions about what would happen if member states faced unsustainable deficits are coming true, read the paper here http://www.jubilee-centre.org/document.php?id=22

Walk the talk

The application is restricted to Brits this week (but will probably bring a smile to our other readers!)  At the risk of sounding pedantic, I challenge my fellow British citizens to consider their language and if necessary, to stop speaking of Europe as if the continent didn’t include UK!  Britain is part of Europe geographically, historically, and by virtue of EU membership; acknowledging our common heritage this way might make us more sensitive to the concerns and challenges facing our fellow Europeans.

The last word

From the Bible, Luke 14:28-30 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'”