The European Union

Europe 's mid-life crisis

Mar 15th 2007

From The Economist print edition

A successful club celebrates its 50th birthday in sombre mood

ANYBODY reaching 50 naturally likes to reflect a bit on their achievements and failures. So it is with the European Union, which later this month marks the 50th anniversary of the signing in Rome of its founding treaty in 1957. Europe's leaders plan a jamboree in Berlin that will issue a portentous declaration. Their voters may not be impressed.

For the fact is that, even as it turns 50 , the EU is mired in a mid-life crisis. The biggest problem is economic. European economies have perked up recently, but the record is still of lamentably slow growth and high unemployment. This is hardly the EU's fault—the blame lies more with national governments— but it makes it hard to drum up much popular affection for the union's institutions. Indeed, economic ills make voters suspicious not only of globalisation generally but also of such EU projects as enlargement and the single marke t. They also contributed heavily to the rejection of the EU's constitution by the French and the Dutch in 2005: France's voters might have said yes, had unemployment been 3%, not 10%.

In search of success

Does this sombre mood mean that the European project has failed? Not at all. As our special report this week notes, its early decades were spectacularly successful. The 50 years before the Treaty of Rome included two world wars and a great depression. The 50 years since have brought peace and prosperity on a scale unimaginable in Europe's history. This process culminated in 2004 in the reunification of a continent divided by the iron curtain of communism. Most European countries are now ensconced in the union.

But peace is now largely taken for granted. There is little enthusiasm for more enlargement, even though this has proved a brilliant way of entrenching liberal democracy in Europe's neighborhood (more so than anything America has managed in its backyard ). And, as for prosperity, young Europeans find it far less assured than it was for their parents.

The two big tasks for Europe's political leaders in Berlin ought thus to be clear. The first is to reinvigorate their economies . That requires painful changes to make labour markets more flexible, to trim overly generous welfare states and to inject new competition into product markets, especially for services, which account for two-thirds of EU-wide GDP. To do all this means taking on trade unions and othervested interests. It also makes it vital for national governments to support, not undermine, Europe'ssingle-market rules and competition policies. And it is thoroughly unhelpful if national politicians adopt the line that some candidates in France's presidential election have been taking by blaming the euro for their ills and bashing the European Central Bank.

The second job for the politicians is to make a lot more effort to persuade their voters that they have benefited from the enlargement of the club. All independent analyses of the expansion to take in central and eastern European countries in 2004 have found economic gains not just in the new countries but in the old ones as well—indeed, this is one reason why Europe's economies have recently picked up. Most pointedly, the gains were greatest in the three countries that fully opened up their labour markets to migrant workers from the new members: Britain, Ireland and Sweden. More such gains can be expected from any further enlargement.

Yet the Berlin meeting, under the chairmanship of Germany's chancellor, Angela Merkel, will be preoccupied by a different issue altogether: how to revive the draft EU constitution. Ms Merkel, whose country now occupies the union's six-monthly rotating presidency, has made this her overriding priority.

Her reasoning is that the union cannot function properly without it, that due attention should be given to the 18 countries that have ratified the constitution and the four that are ready to do so, and that the EU can neither regain its zip nor expand any further unless the constitution is brought into effect in some form.

She is wrong. The EU's institutions were designed for six, not today's 27, and parts of the constitution would certainly improve them. But there is no agreement about what to do with the constitution. Some countries want a bigger treaty with social provisions; others a smaller one with no new powers for Brussels; others want to reopen all the institutional compromises. The French presidential election and the imminent arrival of a new British prime minister make agreement on a new text highly unlikely.

Anyway, the EU works without the constitution. It takes longer to make decisions with 27 than with six or 15, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is true that a new deal is needed by 2009 on the size of the European Commission and on votes and parliamentary seats for Croatia, but this can be done in Croatia's accession treaty. And the claim that no new members can sign up without the constitution is political, not legal. It is made by those who don't want Turkey to join and are using the constitution's absence as an excuse.

Enough bickering

Europe 's disillusioned citizens are not interested in these institutional arguments in any case. In so far as they care about Brussels, they want not the constitution but simplification and more say in decision making, which points to more radical answers. These might include scrapping such pointless bodies as the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of Regions, replacing a European Parliament that cannot win legitimacy with a European Senate made up of national parliaments, and repatriating more powers back to nation-states. But what Europe's citizens want most of all from the EU is real benefits, especially economic ones.

An EU that helps to restore prosperity to its members may also be able to rekindle its citizens' enthusiasm for itself. Economic reform should thus make institutional reform easier to bring about. So can Europe resolve its mid-life crisis? Yes, if it concentrates on the things that matter most, instead of bickering over the constitution. The choice is between reform and revival or decline and decay.

 

精彩 ---- 经典

 

这几乎不能算是欧盟的错， 责任主要在于各个成员国政府。但是，这却使得欧盟难以深得人心。

This is hardly the EU's fault—the blame lies more with national governments— but it makes it hard to drum up much popular affection for the union's institutions.

 

这些成为法国和德国反对欧盟宪法的重要原因：法国也许会投赞成票，如果失业率是 3% 而不是 10% 的话。

They also contributed heavily to the rejection of the EU's constitution by the French and the Dutch in 2005: France's voters might have said yes, had unemployment been 3%, not 10%.

 

在罗马协定（不知是否正确）签订的前五十年，发生了两次世界大战和一次经济大萧条。而其后的五十年里，欧洲出现了历史上无法想像的和平和繁荣景象。

The 50 years before the Treaty of Rome included two world wars and a great depression. The 50 years since have brought peace and prosperity on a scale unimaginable in Europe's history.

 

一些法国总统候选人将他们的错误归罪于欧元，并强烈批评欧洲中央银行。如果成员国的政治家也采取这样的态度，那它也会完全不起作用。

 

And it is thoroughly unhelpful if national politicians adopt the line that some candidates in France's presidential election have been taking by blaming the euro for their ills and bashing the European Central Bank.

  

 

一个能帮助其成员国恢复繁荣的欧盟也许也能够恢复其公民对它的热情。

An EU that helps to restore prosperity to its members may also be able to rekindle its citizens' enthusiasm for itself.

 

 

其面临的选择是：要么改革复兴，要么拒绝消亡。

 

The choice is between reform and revival or decline and decay.

 

 

重振他们的经济              reinvigorate their economies

减少过于慷慨的福利            trim overly generous welfare states

 

使产品市场有更多的竞争           inject new competition into product markets

 

不久以后英国新首相的上台    imminent arrival of a new British prime minister

 

Vocabulary

Somber

1

sad and serious

ￚ synonym grave

They sat in somber silence.

We were all in a somber mood that night.

a somber expression

on the somber occasion of his mother's funeral

 

ￚ sombreness noun [uncountable]

 

jamboree / ˌd ʒ æmb ə ˈ ri ː / [countable]

a big noisy party or event

 

 

portentous / p ɔ ː ˈtent ə s $ p ɔ ː r- /

1

literary showing that something important is going to happen, especially something bad

Recent developments are as portentous as the collapse of the Berlin Wall.

2

trying to appear important and serious

a portentous film

 

mired [not before noun] literary

1

stuck in a bad situation and unable to get out or make progress

mired in

a government mired in scandal and controversy

 

midlife crisis [countable]

a period of worry and lack of confidence that some people experience when they are about 40 or 50 years old and begin to feel that they are getting old

 

perk up phrasal verb

1

to become more cheerful, active, and interested in what is happening around you, or to make someone feel this way

She seemed kind of tired, but she perked up when Helen came over.

perk somebody ↔ up

There's no doubt coffee perks you up.

 

drum something ↔ up phrasal verb

to get support, interest, attention etc from people by making an effort

He travelled throughout Latin Americadrumming up support for the confederation.

The organization is using the event to drum up business (=get more work and sales) .

 

culminate in/with something phrasal verb

if a process culminates in or with a particular event, it ends with that event

A series of events for teachers and students will culminate in a Shakespeare festival next year.

 

Ensconce [transitive usually passive]

to settle yourself in a place where you feel comfortable and safe

ensconce in/at/on etc

Nick was comfortably ensconced in front of the TV set.

ensconce yourself

Agnes had ensconced herself in the best bedroom.

 

Assured

1

confident about your own abilities

ￚ synonym self-assured

an assured manner

2

be assured of something

if you are assured of something, you will definitely get it or achieve it

His victory means that he is now assured of a place in the final.

3

certain to happen or to be achieved

Her political future looks assured.

 

Trim

2

▶ REDUCE ◀

to reduce a number, amount, or the size of something

We need to trim costs by £500m.

The bill would trim the number of immigrants to the US.

trim something from/off something

The company trimmed £46,000 from its advertising budget.

 

Inject

2

to improve something by adding excitement, interest etc to it

inject something into something

Traditional handbag makers are injecting more fun into their designs.

A market building can inject new life into an area.

3

to provide more money, equipment etc for something

inject something into something

They need to inject more money into sports facilities.

 

 

Vested

1

vested interest

a strong reason for wanting something to happen because you will gain from it

Since he owns the strip of land, Cook has a vested interest in the project being approved.

2

vested interests

the groups of people who will gain from a plan, project, proposal etc

The proposal faces tough opposition from powerful vested interests.

 

Undermine [transitive]

to gradually make someone or something less strong or effective

economic policies that threaten to undermine the health care system

undermine somebody's confidence/authority/position/credibility etc

 The constant criticism was beginning to undermine her confidence.

 

4

take somebody ↔ on

to compete against someone or start a fight with someone, especially someone bigger or better than you

Nigeria will take on Argentina in the first round of the World Cup on Saturday. He was prepared to take on anyone who laid a finger on us.

 

 

Line 11

▶ OPINION/ATTITUDE ◀

[singular]an opinion or attitude, especially one that someone states publicly and that influences their actions

line on

I can't agree with the government's line on immigration.

Journalists are often too willing to accept the official line (=the opinion that a government states officially) .

He found it hard to accept the party line (=the official opinion of a political party) on every issue.

take a tough/firm/hard line on something

The school takes a very tough line on drugs.

Bash

2

[transitive] to criticize someone or something very strongly

He was always bashing the trade unions.

 

Pick up

12

▶ IMPROVE ◀

a) if a situation picks up, it improves

Her social life was picking up at last.

The economy is finally beginning to pick up again.

We've been through a bit of a bad patch, but things are picking up again now.

 

 

Preoccupied

thinking about something a lot, with the result that you do not pay attention to other things

What's wrong with Cindy? She seems a little preoccupied.

preoccupied with

He's completely preoccupied with all the wedding preparations at the moment.

 

overriding[only before noun]

more important than anything else

a question of overriding importance

Their overriding concern is with efficient crime control.

 

 

Reasoning [uncountable]

a process of thinking carefully about something in order to make a judgment

scientific/logical/legal reasoning

reasoning behind

What is the reasoning behind this decision?

 

Zip

2

[uncountable] informal speed, energy, or excitement

This car goes with a bit more zip than my last one. A spoonful of mustard will give the dish some zip.

 

Repatriate

1

to send someone back to their own country

ￚ see also deport

After the war, prisoners were repatriated.

 

 

point to something phrasal verb

to mention something because you think it is important

Many politicians have pointed to the need for a written constitution.

 

rekindle / ri ː ˈk ɪ ndl / [transitive]

to make someone have a particular feeling, thought etc again

ￚ synonym reawaken

The trial has rekindled painful memories of the war.

 

Bicker [intransitive]

to argue, especially about something very unimportant

I wish you two would stop bickering.

bicker about/over

They kept bickering over who should answer the phone.

 

ￚ bickering noun [uncountable]

 

the single market

a group of countries in Europe that allow goods to be moved, bought, and sold between them with very few controls

 

constitution

2

your health and your body's ability to fight illness

(have) a strong/good/weak etc constitution

 She's got a strong constitution - she'll recover in no time.

 

 

1

the welfare state

a system in which the government provides money, free medical care etc for people who are unemployed, ill, or too old to work

 

blame/ ble ɪ m / [transitive]

1

to say or think that someone or something is responsible for something bad

blame somebody/something for something

Marie still blames herself for Patrick's death.

The report blames poor safety standards for the accident.

The decision to increase interest rates was widely blamed (=blamed by many people) for the crisis.

blame something on somebody/something

One of the computers is broken and she's blaming it on me.

The crash was blamed on pilot error.

 

 

in so far as/insofar as/in as far as

formal to the degree that

The research suggests that the drug will be successful, in so far as one can draw conclusions from such a small sample size.