British Euro-scepticism and why we should embrace closer European ties.

Is it time for us to forget our past world-wide imperial glories?

By Adam Cooper.

Following the drama and razzmatazz of the US election this week and the ceaseless media coverage given to it on television, radio and news websites my neck is feeling a little stiff from looking west. In all this excitement we may have forgotten Britain is a part of Europe, and I for one think we should embrace that.

Our commitment to Europe has always been in fits and starts. Britain’s paradox is a long history of at the same time leading European affairs and remaining aloof from them. This harks back centuries owing predominantly to our geography – being adjacent to Europe but an island nation that took its interests further afield – and more recently our “special relationship” with America.

Since leaving our imperial empire behind we have continued our yo-yoing view of Europe. We joined the Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1990, but subsequently fell foul of it in 1992; we have embraced policies of the EU and its expansion, but have not joined in the single currency; we are a leading partner in EU defence and security initiatives, but at the same time follow America into war; and most recently, we were proponents of closer ties in the EU but then were not allowed a chance to air our personal views in a referendum. We sit in a curious position in between Europe and America and remaining on the fence will not allow us to reap the huge benefits in closer cooperation.

Euro Minister Caroline Flint spoke at the University a couple of weeks ago about Labour’s “future visions for Europe”, bringing this debate to the fore. She set out some ideas that she believes are among the most important in what she hopes to achieve. These began and ended with the economy. Not least because of the now confirmed economic recession but also because of what she believes underpins all in our lives, be it cultural or social, she named economic factors at the paramount concern of British participation in the European Union.

However, it’s not just about the economy. Britain needs to work with Europe more than ever in order to dampen the impending crisis, but more than this we need to be prepared to become a full-time player in Europe and curtail our habitual flirting with the US. Settling an EU constitution would be one part of this.

This does not mean having to make a straightforward, black and white, Euro-sceptic or Euro-enthusiast decision – we can maintain both ties in some measure. However, if we wish to become more involved in Europe we have to embrace it to a greater extent than before.

Is it time for us to forget our past world-wide imperial glories? Certainly not, but perhaps it is time to accept a diminished role in world affairs and, far short of advocating the ancient ideas of Aquitaine, I believe we can benefit from looking to the continent and working with and not around our European neighbours.

My view is “go east”. We do not need to submit ourselves to overbearing European legislation and control but we should not be afraid to become more involved in the dynamics of the EU and, as far as our history will teach us, we will actually be able to take a leading role in the future of Europe should we commit fully.

We should develop an emotional connection to Europe and allow a European identity to flourish. The continent is where our history developed from and it should be where our future lies. If we no longer wish to catch a cold when America sneezes then we need to face the other way.

EU sets communication priorities for 2009

Euroactiv [moderated, see full article here]

The European institutions are close to agreeing on three major subjects that they wish to build on next year to reach out to EU citizens. These are the fight against climate change, the June 2009 European elections and significant anniversaries of the reunited Europe. 1 May 2009 marks five years since the 2004 enlargement, while 9 November 2009 sees the twenty-year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

A declaration entitled ‘Communicating Europe in partnership’ was signed on 22 October in Strasbourg by European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pöttering, Commission President José Manuel Barroso and French State Secretary for European Affairs Jean-Pierre Jouyet, on behalf of the Council.

The text does not specifically define the priorities for 2009, stating only that the three institutions will identify “a limited number of communication priorities” each year. Nevetheless, Joe Hennon, spokesperson for Margot Wallström, the commissioner responsible for communication policy, told EurActiv that the three priorities were almost agreed. The deal is expected to be finalised at a meeting in the European Parliament in November.

As simple as it may appear at first glance, EU countries are in fact reluctant to have communication priorities imposed on them by the European institutions, and the institutions themselves must fight hard to have the final say. This is why the document signed in Strasbourg is seen as a breakthrough, however modest it may seem in its scope.

An inter-institutional ‘Group on Information’ will follow up on progress made, holding sessions twice a year. It will be co-chaired by Parliament, Council and Commission representatives, with the participation of the Committee of the Regions and the European Economic and Social Committee as observers. Spanish MEP Alejo Vidal-Quadras currently represents the Parliament, while his Commission counterpart is Margot Wallström.

Communicating Europe in Ireland

The Commission expects Ireland to engage in “some kind of partnership” in communicating Europe. Three countries, namely Hungary, Slovenia and Germany, have signed such partnership agreements already, and in the near future such cooperation could focus on the European elections, Hennon revealed. As for the communication effort in the context of a possible Lisbon Treaty revote, he said the EU executive would expect Ireland to set out the areas in which they thought such cooperation would be useful.