CNV

Less than half of the European voters have put their ballot in the European box in the first days of June. Apparently the Europe Union is for most Europeans still something that does not concern them. Or they have doubts about the power of the European Parliament. Probably both factors play a role in the low turnout of voters.

On the one hand people do not really know the influence of the European Union on their lives. On the other the European Parliament still has very limited power compared to that of the National Parliaments. The real political power on European level is in the hands of the European Council consisting of the Prime Ministers or Presidents of all EU-countries.

All traditional parties – Christian Democrats, Social Democrats and Liberals - with exception of the Greens, have lost votes. The European Peoples Party – EPP (Christian Democratic and some centre-conservative parties) has lost less than 1% while the Socialist Party nearly lost 6%. The EPP has, in spite of some loss, consolidated its position as the biggest fraction within the European Parliament with 264 of a total of 716 seats. The SP now has 161 seats.

Despite the huge loss in votes both parties – Christian Democrats and Social Democrats – still have 58 % of all seats in the Parliament. The Liberal Party ALDE has nearly 11% of the votes (80 seats) and the Greens more than 7% (53 seats).

The biggest progress was made by outsiders, those parties that are very sceptical with regards to the European Union as a political community or even against the institution itself. There is a new kind of nationalism awakening in Europe and we will have to see if this will limit itself to the so-called question of the national identity or that it will go even further.

On the one hand the loss of the Liberals shows that less voters than before believe in the free market as the solution for the economic and political problems of Europe. On the other the dramatic loss of the Social Democrats shows that less voters than before believe that State-intervention as such will be the solution for the current European economic and social problems.

The European Organization of the World Organization of Workers – EO/WOW – believes that the European Union needs to become a Social-Political Community in stead of only a Common Free Market. The Common Free Market has created a higher standard of living for most Europeans but it should not stop there. The European Union must take care that all European will get work under the same labour-conditions (holidays, sick leave, health care, safety on the job etc.) and get the same social security protection.

Private enterprises are not always the best way to organize public services and public utilities such as water and electricity or health care and public transport. The European  Union must therefore develop a policy with criteria where private enterprises and state enterprises will achieve the best results for the society as a whole.

Piet Nelissen is Member of the Board of the World Organization of Workers