After several postponements, the European Commission put forward an orientation for a reform of the EU economic governance framework on 9 November. Now, hopefully, a real political discussion can take off. Since the global financial crisis in 2007, the sovereign debt crisis, the migration and climate emergency and the emergence of the EU Green Deal, […]
Stability and Growth Pact
So far, the European Health Union is largely focused on the necessary task of improving health security. A more comprehensive Health Union also needs to consider health promotion. But what does health promotion mean? Is it merely an instrument to nudge individual behaviours, or can it be more than that? A truly health-promoting Union requires […]
In her address to the European Parliament on the State of the European Union, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen talked about the need to “rediscover the spirit of Maastricht”. This is misguided, given that the old rules damaged both political integration and economic performance. New, bold proposals are needed to allow for genuine economic […]
Until a few months ago, the policy and academic debate in the EU revolved around the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), praised across the board as proof of European solidarity and a concrete manifestation of the EU commitment to address the pandemic crisis. The RRF indeed marked a leap forward towards a stronger redistributive role […]
Even before the Covid pandemic has subsided, Europe is now facing another major shock in the form of the Ukraine war. It is threatening economic growth and jobs, and the accompanying soaring inflation is hitting low-income households especially hard. In all this, it is unclear how long the war will last and how drastic the restrictions on energy supply will be.
In early March 2022, EU housing ministers met informally for the first time in almost ten years. They had much to discuss – the housing crisis in Europe is evident. There is no country, no region, and no city where people are not suffering from the rising cost of housing. The ministers’ response was ambivalent. […]