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October 27, 2009
Last week, I attended the PES Social Europe Network – a group of prominent PES policy-makers chaired by my colleague and good friend Alejandro Cercas – for a discussion of what I think is one of the most serious and yet most sidelined issues of the day: unemployment. I decided to dedicate a blog post… » read more
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Employment, English, PES President, Sustainable Dev., Unemployment, Workers mobility |
September 25, 2009
After a fruitful meeting with the Americans for Financial Reform, I briefly met Richard Trumka, the newly elected President of AFL CIO – the largest federation of trade unions in North America – and delivered a speech at a meeting with the ITUC. Here is the message I conveyed to our American friends: The outcome… » read more
September 23, 2009
President Barack Obama is still strong and very convincing when he talks. He is sending a clear message as when I saw him during his inauguration in Washington. Yesterday, during Bill Clinton’s global initiative conference, his message was again very clear and firm. Nobody can do it alone. We must cooperate. And permit ourselves to… » read more
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English, Enlargement and Neighbours, PES President, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen |
June 11, 2009
We said it before the election, and after the election we are saying exactly the same: the PES cannot support a reelection of Barroso. Now more than ever, Europe needs a fundamental change of direction and real crisis management. After the election, the PES is the second largest group in the European Parliament, and we… » read more
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democracy, English, EU Priorities and Opinion, PES, PES President, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen |
June 8, 2009
While we await the final results of the European elections, it is obvious our socialist and social democratic family had a disappointing result. We face a more conservative European Parliament, with a right that is more euro-sceptic and more nationalistic than before. The low participation rate was a huge problem, especially for us. Our voters… » read more
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Elections, English, EU Priorities and Opinion, European elections, PES President |
May 27, 2009
Frankfurt is a city of contrasts. The shining towers that dominate the skyline house much a major financial centre, an industry which needs to undergo major reforms if we are to avoid future financial crises. Over recent years, a handful of bankers and dealers in these skyscrapers have been able to play roulette with the… » read more
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Elections, English, EU Priorities and Opinion, PES President |
May 25, 2009
I keep reading in the media that Barroso’s second term as Commission President is a ‘done deal’. I disagree. It’s true that that many Governments are supporting him and so his nomination by the Council for a second term looks likely. But the Council’s nomination is not sure. It is due to make its nomination… » read more
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Elections, English, EU Priorities and Opinion, PES President |
May 22, 2009
Few can doubt that the figures on the state of the European economy are grim. GDP in the Eurozone fell by 2.5% between January and March this year. In Germany, Europe’s largest economy, it fell by 3.8%; on an annual basis that is enough to wipe out the cumulative growth of every year since 1999.… » read more
May 16, 2009
I used to admire Finland for its originality, its spark, its way of doing things differently. Finland was the country where people, sitting in their saunas, asked “Is this really the best way of doing things? Maybe we can do better.” They developed one of the most successful social models in the world. They developed… » read more
We northern Europeans often complain about the blustery, rainy, windy weather that batters our shores, but this climate also offers us great potential to face the economic and environmental storms overhead. That’s because on our very coastlines we have a resource which can provide more energy than the Gulf oilfields and create thousands of jobs,… » read more
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action days, energy efficiency, Energy Supply, English, PES President |
Today is Europe Day, the annual celebration of European integration. It marks the day in 1950 on which the Schuman Declaration was signed, launching the Coal and Steel Community: the start of what we now call the European Union. The declaration included a commitment to "the equalisation and improvement of the living conditions of workers".… » read more
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action days, Elections, English, PES, PES President, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen |
May 5, 2009
We MEPs are all in Strasbourg this week for the final plenary of the European Parliament before the European elections, and there’s a lot to get through. However busy this week is, there will still be a great stack of issues landing in the in-tray for the start of the new 2009-2013 Parliament. It’s up… » read more
