This EuroMemorandum draws on discussions and papers presented at the 22nd Workshop on Alternative Economic Policy in Europe, organised by the EuroMemo Group in cooperation with the Faculty of Economics, University of Coimbra, from 15-17 September 2016 in Coimbra, Portugal.
The crisis of the EU is multifaceted and has visibly deepened during the last year. The British referendum on EU membership and the vote in favour of Brexit have only been the most explicit symptom of the disintegrative tendencies. The core-periphery rift in the euro area has continued. The arrival of a large number of refugees from the war-torn areas of the Middle East has resulted in acrimonious conflicts in the EU on the question who should take care of them. The way in which the pro-free trade forces pushed through the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada showed utter disregard for the objections of democratically elected bodies (e.g. the Belgian regions of Wallonia and Brussels). Macroeconomically the euro area is still far from a sustained recovery and with the general weakening of the world economy and the uncertainties caused by the Brexit vote the fragility of the recovery has recently increased considerably. The European Central Bank continued and even reinforced its policy of very easy credit. However, there are signs that this policy may be reaching its limits.
The EuroMemorandum 2017 critically analyses recent economic developments in Europe and emphasises the strong need for an alternative economic policy that is based on the principles of democratic participation, social justice and environmental sustainability. It will be published together with a list of signatories.
Therefore, if you are in broad agreement with the main lines of argument of this year’s EuroMemorandum, please express your support.
In order to submit your declaration of support to the EuroMemo Group, please fill in the declaration of support on the right and send it back by Tuesday, 10 January 2017 via email to info@euromemo.eu or by fax to: +49-(0)69-4305-1764.
Please distribute the EuroMemorandum 2017 widely.
Thank you very much for your support and best wishes,
Stefanie Marie Scholz
– for the EuroMemo Group Steering Committee –