Where is the pilot?

As Austrian daily Die Presse remarked last week, Europe, which is succumbing to "the destructive effect of centrifugal forces" is apparently embarked in a process of slow disintegration. The Germans do not want to pay for the Greeks. France, which along with Germany, is supposed to form the "engine" of Europe is at a loss as to how to move forward. Spain and Italy, which have been caught in the embrace of austerity, are no longer able to weigh on EU decisions, while the United States has expressed its concern over the undisciplined behaviour of its European colleagues. And to top it all, the Hungarians and Slovaks have become involved in what Budapest's Népszabadság describes as "a perverse tango" on the issue of minorities and territorial claims.

In theory, the direction taken by the Union should not be solely determined by member states. Europe's institutions, and in particular the Commission and the European Council have an important role to play, especially in unprecedented situations like the one engendered by the current crisis. However, Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who has been largely absent from the airwaves over the past few months, has been unable to revive the European project, while European Council President Herman Van Rompuy lacks the necessary clout to force member states to face up to their responsibilities.

That said, it's important to acknowledge the difficulty of the task faced by Europe's institutions, which are supposed to establish common policies for member states that are stubbornly going their own way. This was once again demonstrated this week by the response to two ideas proposed by internal markets commissioner Michel Barnier, and the climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard. Barnier's plan to impose a banking levy to create national funds which could be used to rescue banks in times of crisis has drawn immediate opposition from the UK and to a lesser extent France, to the point where it is no longer certain that debate on the proposal will continue.

At the same time, France and Germany have quickly moved to block Hedegaard's plan to increase the 2020 target for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from 20% to 30%. The development of informed environmental policy and an economy based on a new model ought to serve to renew European cooperation and relaunch growth in the Union, but it now appears that ambition in the field of policy making — one of the few areas where Europe can still claim to lead the world — has all but disappeared. In short we are embarked on a process of slow disintegration. And the question now is: will anyone be able to stop it?

Eric Maurice