The European Interest: succeeding in the age of globalisation
November 14, 2007 12:00 AM
By Sharon Bowles MEP in European Parliament
By Sharon Bowles MEP in European Parliament
Globalisation is blamed for everything, from population explosion to climate change to exploitation. But these are just products of mankind; so is competition. Darwin called it natural selection.
European citizens are fearful. We must educate them, true, but not by stating that we need a policy at EU level to face the challenge of a globalised economy. That makes me fearful, suggesting that we do not have a policy.
The EU has unique power at supranational level to shape things and to challenge excesses. In July, in the Financial Times it said: 'Brussels is the regulatory capital of the world and cannot be ignored from Washington to Tokyo'. So, if we have got it, let us use it, but judiciously. What is the purpose of a competitiveness agenda if it is not to maintain our position in the world? What is the purpose of a single market if we fail to get it properly completed? Stop the faint-hearted excuses. The EU is absolutely about meeting the challenges. We just need to get on with it before natural selection catches up.
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