Has Europe outlived its usefulness?

Europe has lost contact with the vision that gave it birth and has failed to replace it with another.

It was set up by a generation formed by war. Two bloody wars had been fought through the fields and cities of Europe in the previous thirty years. We can hardly begin to imagine the thirst for peace. So the idea began to grow of developing a culture of mutual benefit and interdependence which would override the struggles for power and territory.

The idea was to root a lasting peace in shared prosperity.The richer countries were to help the poorer and all would be stronger for it.

This was a generation which had seen the horrors of rampant nationalism and could see the point of supranationalism. It recognised that the greater good required some sacrifices from the better off. But the generations since then have grown up in a very different world.

Peace in Europe is assumed and not valued.

Emphasis has shifted from ‘society’ to ‘the individual’ and individuals are seen as having a duty to themselves and their family rather than to a wider society. The language of ‘public money’, to be used for the good of society as a whole, has given way to the language of ‘taxpayers’ money’, to be used sparingly and mainly for the benefit of the taxpayer, on education and health, rather than on social services or welfare. Not surprisingly, many people can no longer see the point of the European Union.

Fairly or not it is seen as expensive in itself and as creating problems for British businesses by over-regulation. An endeavour which was intended to use mutual dependence to spread prosperity is all too often being judged solely on its cost and its ability to benefit Britain and British business. By those standards it will always be found wanting because Britain will always be one of the richer nations of Europe.

The EU itself has done nothing to help its cause.

Without a strong vision it has spent its time on structures, finance and expansion. The maintenance of peace is still important, but it will not rouse passions. The safeguarding of a level economic playing field is important but if it appears to create problems for the wealthier nations it will win few friends.

So has the European project outlived its usefulness? Should it be allowed to quietly decay? Surely the answer has to be no.

There are so many things we do better together: defence; care of the environment; control of international corporations; holding our own on the world stage. Care for those displaced by war and persecution would be easy if we tackled it together.

The EU needs to stop being so inward looking and its constituent nations need to develop a new shared vision for Europe as an organisation that brings mutual benefit over and above the economic. With such a vision it will command respect and support. Without it we will all be the poorer.

About the author

Paula Yates teaches Christian history and Anglicanism and is responsible for quality assurance at St Michael’s College, Cardiff and the Church in Wales’ new training arm, St Padarn’s Institute. She is a former leader of Maidstone Borough Council and has been a candidate for the European Parliament.