mr president december's european council at least gave us political agreement on a permanent crisis resolution mechanism but given the reaction of the markets after christmas with new fears over the solvency of portugal spain and belgium we have to ask whether once again this was a case of too little too late
the proposed european stabilisation mechanism itself raised new questions on the financial markets and the existing financial stability mechanism is now regarded as insufficient
opportunities have been missed again
in december parliament sent a clear signal to the council on eurobonds but there has been no constructive response from either the council or the commission
what we have had ever since two thousand and eight is repeated hesitation and internal wrangling between member states and the institutions and each time a painfully extracted response but produced too late and constituting less than what was required
the clearest illustration of the problem is the fact that in the face of today's economic and monetary challenges we simply do not have the tools we need
they are inappropriate or non-existent
our institutional decision-making processes are complex and lacking in democracy and our economic policy strategy is divided and ineffective
the financial markets are not keeping the pressure on us just because of high debt and deficit levels president barroso they are also doing so because they want compensation for the risk of lending money to a project that seems incapable of reaching maturity or fulfilling its own destiny
what is holding the eurozone together today is less the dream of the founding fathers than simply the nightmare of the alternative total collapse of the system
the abject failure to deal with the crisis is driving the european project into political deadlock
what chance is there right now of a stronger and more democratic set of institutions emerging from a revised treaty
intelligent calls for more political integration like that last week from the head of the german bundesbank really do not stand a chance
against this background i am shocked president barroso at the frontal attack by the commission on social europe and the interference with national labour markets as in the case of ireland
the annual growth survey is indeed a frontal attack on long-established socially and economically essential workers rights and on the very concept of collective bargaining
if this is validated by the european council it is a strategy which in my view is the worst imaginable in the situation we currently face
not only will it be exposed as economic lunacy but it will be profoundly damaging to the european project
big ideas can fail mr president and i really worry about this european project
as history tells us people will deny the possibility of failure right up to the last moment
let us recognise the possibility of failure
mr farage is nodding
the failure to act president van rompuy president barroso is feeding ammunition to mr farage and his allies
let us act for heaven's sake
