Government of Flanders calls for radical EU reform

The government of Flanders has called for a radical bottom-up reform of the way the European Union makes decisions, in a white paper on the future of the EU following the British vote to leave.

The paper begins by stressing that the EU is “the first and the most important” lever of Flemish foreign policy, and that the government fully supports a level of European co-operation based on subsidiarity, proportionality, responsibility and solidarity. What follows, the paper says, was based on three meetings organised by the government’s international department and the Flemish-European co-operation agency and involving organisations representing civil society, held between November 2015 and February 2016.

The UK’s departure from the EU – known as Brexit – is not an isolated incident, the paper points out. “The EU today is confronted with a failure of confidence and systemic crises,” it says, with an increase in “concern over the direction of EU policy and the current working of EU institutions”.

At the same time, it faces problems beyond its control: the refugee crisis and security problems, social dumping and fiscal shopping and an ageing population. “The European project requires a relaunch, and the EU needs to go back to its sources,” the paper states.

‘Public debate’

“People need to be more involved, and their expectations, criticisms, worries and hopes need to be listened to,” minister-president Geert Bourgeois says in a concept note attached to the white paper. “The EU also needs to be the subject of public debate at all levels, and there has to be work done on EU citizenship based on shared European values.”

Bourgeois also repeated his call made earlier in the year for a better Europe. “This debate on the future is an opportunity for the EU to reflect on itself. We must not expect an institutional Big Bang, treaty changes or a sterile more-or-less-Europe debate,” he says. “We’re talking about a better Europe. A Europe that brings results, that embodies the wishes of the people and offers them a future.”

Finally, the paper lays out a 10-point plan for the EU’s core priorities, including strong external borders and a reinforced Schengen zone, social and economic reform at state and regional levels, a social policy that tackles social dumping and fiscal shopping and an ambitious policy on sustainability with support for research.

“To retain its legitimacy,” Bourgeois wrote, “the EU needs to be supported from the bottom up. The Union needs to seek a connection with the European citizenry and constantly demonstrate its added value.”