The question of whether to step up integration as a means of coping with the euro crisis is firmly on the agenda at the EU summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday. After all the EU's unsuccessful attempts to solve the crisis, the left-liberal daily Delo does not have much hope that the summit will be productive: "Should a banking, fiscal and political union emerge according to the development plans, one in which the countries can no longer unilaterally determine their own budgets (without Brussels' blessing), the democratic construct of the Union will need a new foundation. The upcoming EU summit represents another chance for change. Expectations are high, but they will be difficult to fulfil. Preliminary ideas for the future development of the Eurozone are on the table. No one knows how willing states like France will be to relinquish their sovereignty in further key areas. That also goes for the notorious belt-cinching. The price we pay on the Old Continent is that with the institutional strengthening of the Eurozone, the EU will have a core and a periphery made up of the 'rest'. " (26/06/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » Europe
All available articles from » Peter Žerjavič
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

German Chancellor Angela Merkel must show at the EU summit at the end of the week that she has confidence in Europe, writes the news portal Spiegel Online, predicting that a common European government is inevitable: "If the Germans voted today they would drop Europe cold. Merkel must woo the people - even if at the end of the day it could cost her her job. ... There will be no getting around a referendum [on the changes to the German Basic Law to allow for an extension of the competences of the EU]. ... The banking union and euro bonds are merely emergency measures with which the smouldering flames of the crisis can be smothered. After that the Germans will have a new Basic Law and the continent will have a common government, a common policy and a common destiny. That is the consequence of the entire European integration process since the Treaties of Rome. It's too late to turn back now." (25/06/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Germany, » Europe
All available articles from » Jakob Augstein
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

Prominent Italian politicians like ex-prime minister Silvio Berlusconi recently explained that there would be benefits to the country exiting the Eurozone. Such anti-European statements could further jeopardise Italy's stability, the left-liberal business paper Cinco Diás warns: "[Prime Minister] Mario Monti is stuck between two comedians. [The blogger and actor] Beppe Grillo, a professional comedian and leader of what is purportedly the second-strongest party in the country, [the Movimento 5 Stelle], wants Italy to exit the Eurozone and not pay its debts. And Silvio Berlusconi is also using anti-European slogans for his comeback bid. … He is now proposing that either Germany or Italy should leave the euro. ... The danger is that the euroscepticism of the second- and third-strongest political forces could damage Italy's image. The investors could drive up the interest rates on government bonds by worrying about what will happen once the Monti era comes to an end: even less confidence, a deepening recession and greater doubts about the survival of the euro." (26/06/2012)

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Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

Ueili Maurer, a member of the Swiss Federal Council and the national-conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP), recently stated in an interview with the weekly newspaper Zeit that no one "who hasn't completely lost their marbles" wants to become part of the EU now. Maurer's frank words could well put Switzerland at a disadvantage one day, writes the Politblog of the liberal daily Tages-Anzeiger: "What if the patient recovers and gets back on its feet again? What if the EU - according to the motto 'what does not kill me makes me stronger' - gains in tempo and clout? … Imagine the outcry in the SVP if - in 10 or 20 years' time - the then EU Commission president says that no one 'who hasn't completely lost their marbles' would now dare to go it alone. People would say it was blackmail - and a lack of respect. If Switzerland then sucks up to Brussels and asks for membership and full participation in the world's most important market, no one should be surprised if Brussels turns up its nose." (25/06/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU enlargement, » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » EU neighbourhood policy, » Switzerland, » Europe
All available articles from » Matthias Chapman
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

After the German Bundestag gave the green light for the European fiscal compact the Länder have now followed suit - after extracting a promise of billions of euros in exchange from the Federal Government. When it comes to the budgetary discipline German Chancellor Angela Merkel is advocating across Europe, Germany itself is not up to scratch, the conservative daily Die Welt laments: "Public debt in Germany has reached a record high at 2.042 trillion euros - that's 2.1 percent more than a year ago. In particular the debts of the German states and municipalities have soared. This points above all to structural weaknesses in Germany's federalism. … It combines the Federal Government, the Länder and the municipalities into an inextricable knot and blurs responsibilities. This leads to games of hide and seek and trickery - as the deal with which the Federal Government was forced to buy the approval of the Länder for the fiscal pact on the weekend illustrates." (26/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Thomas Schmid

In interviews with conservative media in Poland the national-conservative Polish opposition politician Jarosław Kaczyński has fanned fears of the EU by describing the Union as a "kind of German Reich the borders of which never extended as far as they do today". This is just a ploy Kaczyński is using to divert attention from the pitiful state of his party, the liberal daily Gazeta Wyborcza suspects: "These interviews are in principle nothing new. As an ageing star the leader of the [national-conservative] PiS party has once again taken to the stage and is playing the same old records. … And now we come to an important point: in none of the interviews was the PiS chairman asked why the party is in such bad shape. Or why, six months after the elections, the party hasn't been able to gain any ground even though the [ruling] Civic Platform has lost a quarter of its voters in that same period." (26/06/2012)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Germany, » Poland, » Europe
All available articles from » Wojciech Szacki

Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken out against Finland joining Nato after a meeting with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinistö last week. Finland will indeed lose part of its sovereignty whether it joins Nato or not, writes the liberal daily Aamulehti, but adds: "No country, not even the United States or Russia, always gets its way. They too must be willing to make compromises. This is particularly true as regards Nato, in which the individual member states have a lot of influence. In the organisation's supreme decision-making body, the Council, there is no voting and no majority decisions. Nato only becomes active when the members have unanimously decided to do so. One could now ask Putin whether Finland's decision-making powers wouldn't be just as much curtailed if the country bowed to Russia's will as if it joined Nato." (26/06/2012)

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Viktor Orbán's right-wing conservative government decided on Monday to tighten up the country's penal code as of July 1, 2013, among other things by reducing the age of criminal responsibility from 14 to 12 in cases of serious crimes. In the eyes of the pro-government conservative daily Magyar Nemzet the judiciary should now internalise the spirit of the new legislation as quickly as possible: "The new penal code will deter potential criminals with tougher punishments, thereby increasing the people's sense of security. Admittedly, the threat of longer prison sentences won't solve the problems from one day to the next in the country's most godforsaken areas, where people only see the police after a knife fight at the local pub, when they're marking out the position of the victim in chalk. … But it is the reduction in the age of criminal responsibility that has provoked the biggest debates. In future 12-year-olds will also be criminally responsible if they try to kill someone or are guilty of violent muggings. … One thing is for sure: tightening the penal code will only be worthwhile if the judiciary also undergoes a moral renewal and consistently implements the government's will on an everyday basis." (26/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Matild Torkos

Cyprus became the fifth country to seek assistance from the euro bailout fund on Monday after the country's banking sector has come under increasing pressure owing to its close financial ties with Greece. The liberal daily Phileleftheros fears that Cyprus will pay a high price for this help: "The fund is on the one hand a bailout mechanism, but on the other a mechanism of subjugation. And this doesn't bode well for countries that are forced to make use of it. In the beginning the bailout mechanism is relatively flexible, but it becomes increasingly unbending. The best example of this is Greece. The creditors are just doing their job. And so usury is a standard practice. … Once the usurious interest rates have landed you in a situation of complete dependence the creditors' terms of repayment become merciless. The relationship becomes the equivalent of that between a drug dealer and a drug addict! The measures are tough and humiliating." (25/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Marios Christodoulou
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

Portugal's liberal-conservative government has reaffirmed its resolve to adhere to the plan of lowering its budget deficit for 2012 to 4.5 percent, but the business paper Jornal de Negócios suspects this will be more difficult than expected: "Observing the budget plan for the past five months has raised major questions. Can the government stick to the agreed deficit target until the end of the year? The cutbacks in the salaries and pensions of public servants - originally intended as a temporary emergency measure - are not enough to balance out the plunging tax revenues. If this trend continues, by the end of December the country will be more than two billion euros short of the deficit agreed with its creditors. … The 'uncertainties' of [Finance Minister] Gaspar are a sign that either there are further austerity measures to come or that more time and money will be demanded of the creditors to push the deficit below the three percent level." (26/06/2012)

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All available articles from » João Cândido da Silva
Who's saying what » Ways out of the debt crisis

After lengthy talks the EU member states agreed on June 12 in Luxembourg on the basic points of a thoroughgoing reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), and are now entering negotiations with the EU Parliament. The law doesn't provide protection against over-fishing, the liberal daily Göteborgs-Posten contends, and supports Sweden's opposition to the plan: "Sweden could do nothing to prevent the majority decision in the Council of the European Union. But taken together with the protests from other countries, the Swedish stance is not irrelevant. Fishing policy is namely not something that can be decided unilaterally by the Council. The Swedish protests have given the EU Parliament an important signal to view the proposal with a critical eye. ... The politicians must shoulder responsibility for a long-term, sustainable fishing policy." (26/06/2012)

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British Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday announced cuts in benefits for the long-term unemployed and regional adjustments to welfare supplements on salaries and living costs. The left-liberal Scottish daily The Herald condemns the plans: "Ultimately, this debate comes down to the function of welfare. If it is about tackling poverty ... and ensuring that, in a comparatively rich country everyone has a decent standard of living, then what Mr Cameron is proposing is outrageous. ... The problem is that many, in fact most, people who rely on benefits are not scroungers. They are people moving in and out of work, those unable to work for a good reason and those who cannot earn enough to live on because the only work available is low-paid and part-time. The West of Scotland has very large numbers in all three categories. So no, Mr Cameron, regionalised benefits do not make sense." (26/06/2012)

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"Generation Y", born between 1980 and 2000, has just the blend it takes to revive France both socially and economically, writes 30-year-old Benoît Deschodt in the left-leaning daily Libération: "People have been talking about Generation Y for some years now. Many describe these young people as lazy, extroverted, and freeloaders. ... Well, let it be known that yes, I like my 35-hour week. What can I do if this is what the French government stipulates as the working week? Am I a bad employee if I don't feel like preparing Monday's meeting over a long weekend? Yes, I use my five weeks of paid holiday to travel to the far corners of the planet. Yes, I prefer to finish at 6 p.m. to have a chance to see my children before they go to sleep. Bosses, grow up! Evolve, open your doors, let the young generation emancipate itself. France needs a relaxed, energetic youth. The future of our industrial and economic model rests on Generation Y. It's time to put your trust in us!" (25/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Benoît Deschodt

Estonia's chancellor of justice Indrek Teder, who is charged with guarding the constitution and is also the children's ombudsman, has proposed a new law that clearly forbids corporal punishment of minors. The initiative has triggered a vigorous social debate. The news portal Delfi fears that this would lead to parents who reprimand an unruly child with a smack on the bottom being depicted as dangerous criminals: "Now Teder wants a law generally forbidding this punishment, even though two-thirds of parents support it and five percent actually apply it. … The state, which can't control aggressive children, wants to criminalise respectable people to demonstrate its own power. … But things have gone too far when sensible people come to equate a father who smacks a naughty child or pulls a child's hair when it uses obscene words with an antisocial person who regularly beats the living daylights out of his child (or his wife) with anything he can find at his disposal." (24/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Martin Helme

Italy, Germany, Spain and Portugal have made it into the semi finals of the Euro 2012 football championships. It's no mere coincidence that - with the exception of Portugal - these countries also have the strongest national leagues, writes the liberal daily De Standaard: "Certainly, individual talent can destabilise the hierarchy. But otherwise an international football championship above all highlights the strengths of the different leagues. ... In this competition Spain and Germany are the stable powers. That also has to do with the present highly talented generation. But it's no coincidence that these very countries have been praised for their youth training programmes in recent years. Strong competition at home in combination with a long-term vision is a guarantee of success. ... If we accept that the national leagues have outflanked the international competition and that Euro 2012 is for the most part a Champions League, we have every reason to expect a finale between the Primera División and the Bundesliga." (26/06/2012)

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All available articles from » Luc Van Doorslaer
Who's saying what » Kick-off in Eastern Europe