First we had the Euro crisis. Then came the Migrant problem. Now we have the Refugee crisis. The common feature of all of them is that the EU cannot come up with a workable solution. With the Euro they opted for kicking the can down the road. With the refugees, because of the unprecedented numbers, one by one countries with good intentions are being forced to shut their borders. Every commentator at the various crossings describes dreadful scenes of panic and dismay and uses the same word to describe events. Shambles.
There are two underlying causes. The first is the calamity of a foreign policy, mainly driven by the US and the UK, with which the EU mostly went along. The second is the fact, so often emphasised by this Blog, that you cannot have a currency without a government. Well it turns out you cannot have a Union either. Whatever the outcome of the UK’s negotiations over its relationship with Europe, the EU must address the fact that its complex and multi-headed structure of governance is fine for a sunny day, but if the weather changes to darker skies, it is not fit for purpose.
Meanwhile the multitudes continue to flood towards what they suppose is peace, freedom and opportunity. Can the EU deliver on its promise?