Vision Europe 2020 Commentary: Franck Biancheri's Vision in 2003

Madame, Monsieur,

Merci de bien vouloir consacrer 5-10 minutes pour remplir ce questionnaire. Cela nous aidera à améliorer nos services.

Secured
Survio
Create a survey
1

« The European construction launched in the 1950s is a success that has made it possible to create the unity of the continent in a peaceful manner and to ensure the prosperity of its inhabitants. »

Create a survey
2

« Today, with the peaceful unification of the European continent, a stage is coming to an end which requires a fundamental rethinking of the institutions and methods of the past decades. »

Create a survey
3

« The growing difficulties of the current Community system in responding to new challenges have been embodied for several years now by a succession of Community crises affecting both its action and its internal functioning. It has led the EU to a decision-making paralysis on major issues and a confusion of responsibilities, creating doubts and concerns among citizens. The launch of the Convention on the Future of Europe is proof of these difficulties as well as an attempt at renewal. »

Create a survey
4

« The key problem for Europe in the decades to come is therefore to reconcile democratic aspiration, the dream of unity and effective action: Europe is not to be made, it is to be governed democratically and effectively. The Euro is the catalyst of this evolution. »

Create a survey
5

« This new deal marks a major shift in the forces that will determine the future of Europe. Administrations, the real "builders" of Europe over the last 5 decades, must hand over to politicians and citizens. In any case, it is public opinion that will shape Europe in the years to come. »

Create a survey
6

« This democratic transition of the community project is a very delicate period. It coincides with several decisive phenomena: (1) the departure from the initial foundations (war, reconciliation, reconstruction) which had justified the transfer of competences; (2) the ageing of relatively well-off populations which are not very conducive to innovation; (3) the strong questions of Europeans about their future in a world perceived as threatening; (4) the announced arrival of many new and little-known members. These factors are accompanied by a rise in populism, which is difficult for states and traditional political parties to respond to. It is these states and parties, now weakened, that have historically supported the Community project. To date, they have not found a relay at European level.  »

Create a survey
7

« Europe has thus entered a decisive historical phase which will either consecrate its success by perpetuating it as the first democratic continental integration; or will see it drift towards an anti-democratic and xenophobic national-Europeanism and thus towards certain death as a historical project. »

Create a survey
8

« The way forward will be determined by the ability of Europeans in the coming years to do three things simultaneously: - bring the political leaders at the helm of the EU back under the effective democratic control of the citizens in order to make it the central actors of the European collective interest; - fundamentally reorganise the Community administrative system in order to make it an instrument adapted to the European challenges of the coming decades and subject to democratic political control; - fully assume Europe's international responsibilities in order to help build a world where the European values of democracy, freedom, peace and prosperity can flourish.  »

Create a survey
background