Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
The leaders of the lower chambers of parliament of Germany, Italy, France, and Luxembourg have called for a European “Federal Union” in an open letter published in Italian newspaper La Stampa on Sunday.
In the letter, four representatives of EU governments – Claude Bartolone of the French National Assembly, Laura Boldrini of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, Norbert Lammert of the German Bundestag, and Mars Di Bartolomeo of the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies – say that closer cooperation is essential for dealing with problems that no one EU state can tackle on its own, such as immigration, terrorism, and climate change. As RT notes, the letter’s authors also warn that the European integration project is currently more at risk than ever before, with high unemployment and immigration problems driving populist and nationalist movements. The EU must also come to grips with the fact that, last June, the United Kingdom decided to leave the union after holding a national referendum, aka Brexit, becoming the first member nation to opt out of the bloc.
In less than a month, on March 17 next, we Presidents of the national parliaments of the EU we will meet in Rome, how will the representatives of governments, for the sixtieth anniversary of the Treaty from which it began: our Union.But it is plain for all that recurrence requires much more than just a historical commemoration. Birthday comes the most critical stage ever crossed by the European project.
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In such a situation we should not be paralyzed by fear, or by concerns related to the upcoming elections in some of our countries. We must act now, before it’s too late. And take the opportunity of the anniversary to return to the vision and the spirit of the Founding Fathers and relaunch the construction of Europe on foundations refurbished.
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We are convinced that in the face of crisis, we need more Europe, although we have to face headwinds. We can not ignore the social impact that the disastrous economic and financial measures have had on tens of millions of families. We need to focus on growth and jobs that Europe can have no charm for young people if they do not offer them credible job prospects. We must have the courage to share sovereignty in many sectors in which the action of individual States is now totally ineffective and doomed to fail: from global warming to energy policies, from financial markets to the rules for immigration, tax evasion to the fight against terrorism.
Now is the moment to move towards closer political integration: Federal Union of States with large skills. We know that the prospect stirs up strong resistance, but the inaction of some can not be the paralysis of all. Those who believe in the European ideal is to be able to revive rather helplessly to its slow decline. And the United States who do not want to join immediately in that closer integration should be able to do it later.
On Sunday, a number of EU states, including Germany, France and Italy, called for the UK to pay a hefty price as a “divorce settlement.”
The letter was published in the run-up to a meeting of parliamentary leaders in Rome on March 17 to mark the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community (EEC). The treaty’s signing by six countries– Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, West Germany and the Netherlands – in 1957 eventually paved the way for the Maastricht Treaty and the European Union in 1991.
In September of 2015, Lammert, Bartolone, Boldrini and di Bartolomeo also signed a declaration calling for deeper and faster European integration. However, greater European integration is being increasingly challenged by a number of Eurosceptic parties around the continent, including the Alternative for Germany, the National Front in France, and the Party for Freedom in the Netherlands. Upcoming elections could bring these parties closer to power.
According to the European Parliament’s chief Brexit negotiator, Guy Verhofstadt, the European Union must reform, or it risks disappearing under a barrage of internal and external attacks.
The EU is a Dictatorship and completely anti – democratic. Fascist = Communist = Collectivist. There is little difference. These people are a vastly overpaid bunch of commissars or gaulieters who could not give a damn for their citizenry as long as they have the power and the perks.
Just because you throw a lot of nasty labels around does not make it so. In fact it only serves to make these labels meaningless. Go ask people who have lived in actual fascists and communists states what it was actually like.
And the UK should be made to pay a very high price because they are screwing over the other EU members by endangering the EU. What they basically said was ‘Fuck the EU! But can we please keep all the good stuff?’
Just try checking out their behavoir and their commentary when countries want to leave and the bureaucratic and legal roadblocks they throw up to stop countries recovering their sovereignty! I stand by my comments to the absolute hilt. Everything these unelected EU commissioners and bureaucrats do smacks of collectivist totalitarianism. What’s more there is every indication that as countries vote for BREXIT, FREXIT and NEXIT they will get even nastier than they already are and do all in their power to stop these exits happening; and, moreover they are very nasty now and as they get worse even an idiot will at last see it! Only the blind cannot see all this because they live in their liberal socialist utopic dreamland, and believe all the distortions and erroneous mantras and homilies they have been spoon-fed by the Mainstream Media (MSM) and their liberal socialist teachers and university lecturers and professors.
All I read are more nasty labels being thrown around followed by wishful thinking. Again, talk to people who have lived under actual communism and fascism. Then you at least would know what you’re talking about. Get out of your echo chamber man! Diversify your news input. All news is biased. MSM and alternative.
As for the UK regaining its sovereignty, the first thing May did was giving it away again to the US, begging for the crumbs from Donald Trump. How is becoming the 51st State in any way regaining sovereignty? How is being controlled by the banks in the City in any way sovereignty? How is offering tax rates so low they might as well not be to multinationals sovereignty? All the UK is doing is exchanging masters.
I agree with you a Nigel. This “Union” is a farce. A dictatorship administered thru Brussels. Glad U.K. had the sense to leave this madness.
It’s not gonna happen. They won’t succeed. Not paying attention to Bible prophecies has catastrophic consequences. And whereas thou saw iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay Dan 2:43
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