Alde Party Liberal Bulletin 02 2014

second ISSUE 2014

Estonia in the EU: marking 10 years Liberal Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas Interview: Lousewies van der Laan on advancing European integration

LYMEC President: ‘There is no higher value than our freedom’

The power of enlargement: 10 years on

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Contents Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 3 Lead article: Estonia’s 10 years in the European Union: all reforms have been in our own interest Liberal Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas of Estonia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 4 History of enlargement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 7

President’s Column . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 8 Interview: Lousewies van der Laan The EU has a lot of leverage to reform countries for the better . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 10 Dr. István Szent-Iványi Reminiscing my first steps in the Liberal group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 13

Lymec President Vedrana Gujic There is no higher value than our freedom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 14 Associate members corner: Julie Cantalou Is there such a thing as European citizenship? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 16 Liberal movers and shakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 18

Calendar / 4 October 2014 – Latvia Parliamentary elections

The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Party is the party representing

/ 4-5 October 2014 – Herning, Denmark Venstre Congress

In conjunction with our liberal member parties throughout the European continent, we are

liberal democrat values across Europe.

translating the principle of freedom into politics, economics and across all other areas of

/ 4-8 October 2014 – Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom Liberal Democrats Autumn Conference

our societies. The ALDE Party provides an increasingly vital link between citizens and the EU

/ 5 October 2014 – Bulgaria Parliamentary elections

The ALDE Party is made up of more than 50 member parties from across Europe. Liberal

/ 23-25 October – Berlin, Germany Congress of LYMEC, the European Liberal Youth

elections. ALDE was established as a truly transnational political party in 1993.

institutions and is continuously growing in size and significance.

Democrats created their European political family in 1976, ahead of the first European

Liberal Bulletin is a publication of the ALDE Party. It is published three times a year.

/ 26 October 2014 – Ukraine Parliamentary elections / 1 November 2014 – ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands D66 Congress

Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party, aisbl

/ 7-10 November 2014 – Hong Kong Liberal International Executive Committee

Tel. +32 2 237 01 40 – Fax +32 2 231 19 07

/ 20-22 November 2014 – Lisbon, Portugal ALDE Party Congress / 29 November 2014 – The Netherlands VVD Congress

Rue Montoyerstraat 31, 1000 Brussels

Editors: Daniel Tanahatoe, Andrew Burgess, Emma Mustala, ALDE Party Publisher: Didrik de Schaetzen, ALDE Party Date of publication: 19 September 2014 Layout: Trinome.be Printing: Hayez.be With the support of the European Parliament -2-

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Editorial My country of birth, Denmark, was together with Ireland and the United Kingdom in 1973 part of the first wave of enlargement of what was then the European Economic Community. The choice for these countries to join was obvious for most people. The Community had brought reconciliation between two of Europe’s biggest foes as well as stability and prosperity to the six founding states with their large common market.

Subsequent enlargements with three former dictatorships in 1980 and 1986 and three neutral states in 1995 expanded the EU to 15 member states. Ten years ago in 2004, ten new states joined the European Union. In this Liberal Bulletin we’ll look back at that enlargement, which brought the European Union to 25 member states and reunified the European continent. What lessons can we draw and which challenges are still ahead for the EU28?

World events this summer have made it all too clear that our freedom and security can’t be taken for granted. While most people in Ukraine like to see their country make a rapprochement with Europe, others disagree. Armed conflict by separatist Russia-backed rebels has led to the establishment of break away entities out of Kiev’s control, which at the same time is putting pressure on its other neighbours, including NATO and EU members.

While the EU has implemented sanctions against Russia and NATO is supporting the government of Ukraine with expertise with the aim to counter the Kremlin’s aggression, it is clear that we need stronger European leadership that can start tackling the problems decisively. The conflict has shown a very different approach and outlook between the “older EU countries” and the members who joined 10 years ago to the actions and the needed response from EU and NATO. To a large extent it has shown that the EU needs to define and agree upon its role and level of engagement to protect the European values in a global world.

In this edition of Liberal Bulletin, Prime Minister of Estonia, Taavi Rõivas looks at the experience of Estonia since they joined the European Union and at current tensions on our eastern borders. Former observer MEP István SzentIványi reflects on his time when he joined the European Parliament. Liberal Bulletin also interviewed ALDE Party Vice President Lousewies van der Laan who would like to raise the bar for membership.

Jacob Moroza-Rasmussen Secretary General of the ALDE Party

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Lead article: Taavi RĂľivas

Estonia’s 10 years in the European Union: all reforms have been in our own interest Accession to the European Union and NATO 10 years ago was one of the most important events of the recent history of the Republic of Estonia. Only the restoration of independence in 1991 could be considered more important.

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Estonians saw their historical past and future development as part of Europe. In the collective memory of the nation, Estonia prior to the Second World War remained a developed European country throughout the entire Soviet period. Everyone understood that if we want to become a similar democratic welfare state, such as, for example, our northern neighbour Finland, there is no alternative to the European direction.

During the first years after the restoration of independence, the European Union was, however, a distant and vague target for Estonia – securing our statehood seemed significantly more important. And so it was, in fact – Estonia had lost the right to make decisions on its own for half a century and the state had to be built from scratch. This meant fundamental, often painful reforms in economic, political, and social spheres.

From the very start, the reform-minded government of Estonia followed the principle that it is possible to help only those who want to help themselves. The overall liberalisation of economy, massive privatisation, conversion to uniform income tax, and the rapid reduction of all kinds of regulations drew attention in other parts of the world. Estonia quickly attracted foreign investors and quite soon, in 1993, Estonia assumed a leader position

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in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of foreign capital inflow per person.

Getting free from economic dependence on Russia was most important. Paradoxically, however, our Eastern neighbour contributed to this by not ratifying the free trade agreement, signed in 1992. When Russia imposed a double import duty rate on Estonian goods as of 1 July 1994, there were not many other options for Estonian undertakings but to search for other markets for their products. The success of undertakings at the time should inspire even present-day European undertakings who suffer from the pressure of Russian measures of punishment.

However, an understanding that Estonia will not become a viable state if it remains aside from the European integration process also became clearer in time. While during its first years after regaining independence Estonia aimed at turning from the East to the West, then in 1995, when the Parliament unanimously approved the association agreement between Estonia and Europe, accession to the European Union became the priority in terms of Estonian foreign policy. From now on, we not only expressed the wish to become a member of the European Union, but we also started working hard to achieve this goal.

The fears that some residents felt before the accession have not come into being. Parallels with the Soviet Union that sceptics used to draw upon before the accession make us grin today. Estonia is still independent, a nation with its own culture and education. Free movement, studying and living elsewhere are considered obvious.

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The decision to open accession negotiations with Estonia above all confirmed the success of the radical reforms conducted in Estonia.

The reforms to modernise the state now received a different meaning as well, serving also the aim of approaching the European judicial area as quickly as possible. Participation in the enlargement negotiations further strengthened the position of Estonia within the international arena and brought new foreign investments to Estonia.

During the first years of negotiations, Estonia and the European Union tackled topics over which there was no significant dispute. This did not mean that Estonia unconditionally accepted everything that the European Union proposed. For example, in the area of small businesses, however, there were no questions causing difference of opinion.

Deficiency of resources was perceivable in almost all areas. Paradoxically, the liberal system of Estonia was not an advantage in every case: the first import restrictions on the socalled third countries, established largely due to pressure from the European Union, clashed with difficulties caused by inexperience, because before the accession, Estonia had practically no import restrictions.

During the accession negotiations, the main argument of Estonia was that all candidate countries should be judged on the basis of the accession criteria. Basically, we asked the European Union to follow the rules established and to evaluate our achievements objectively.

In these five years, during the time of the accession negotiations, Estonia underwent largescale change. Considering the reform-mindedness of the subsequent governments of Estonia, it can be of course said that these changes would have occurred anyway, but the accession process assisted in keeping the right course and gave a powerful impetus to the reforms.

The current President of the Republic of Estonia, the foreign minister at the time, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, said in the statement he made on the occasion of opening the accession negotiations in spring 1998 that the result of the accession negotiations must, above all, be acceptable to the Estonian nation. If so, then the result was acceptable. In the referendum held on 14 September 2003, the nation voted for the accession to the European Union.

Today, our citizens no longer need to be convinced of the benefits of the European Union.

The percentage of support to the European Union increases year on year and exceeds the average of the union, indicating clearly that in ten years, people have very well understood the advantages of membership. While 66.8 %

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of Estonians supported membership of the European Union at the time of accession, by the end of 2013 this percentage was already 80 %.

The fears that some residents felt before the accession have not come into being. Parallels with the Soviet Union that sceptics used to draw upon before the accession make us grin today. Estonia is still independent, a nation with its own culture and education. Free movement, studying and living elsewhere are considered obvious.

It is an uncontested fact that accession to the European Union has contributed to the increase in the welfare of the state and the citizens. The income of the residents of Estonia has increased. In ten years, salaries and pensions have risen more than twice. Both export and direct investments made into Estonia have increased by two and a half times. The growth in reliability (and prosperity) was also certainly assisted by the accession of Estonia to the Euro area in 2011.

The most significant advantage has, of course, risen from trade relations. The European Union has ensured Estonian undertakings an unrestricted access to the market with the world’s largest purchasing power with more than 500 million consumers. Better access to the single market has accelerated economic development and increased people’s welfare even more than the European Union support, which has also reached Estonia in billions of Euros.

When evaluating the European Union, it is important to understand that it is basically a large-scale cooperation forum, not any anonymous distantly located organisation, which forces its members to accept either pleasant or unpleasant directives. How far the mutual cooperation goes is a matter of agreements.

In conclusion, however, we have made all necessary decisions for ourselves – be it stricter environmental protection requirements, larger investments to research and development activities, the maximum price limit of mobile phone roaming-services, and so forth.

Most useful ideas and best solutions become foregrounded in cooperation. Estonia has the good fortune and pride to be well known in the European Union for its success in the digital sphere. Digital signatures, extensive e-services and the principle of single data query are everyday matters for Estonians and it sometimes actually makes us wonder why these are not that enthusiastically spread in the other member states. Is it not paradoxical that an internal market – one of the leading pillars of the European Union – has not been fully developed in the European Union even up to now?

Finally it serves the interests of us all! The matter lies in economic growth, competitiveness and new workplaces. Analyses indicate that a completely functioning joint market would entail an 8 % increase in the GDP of the European Union in the following ten years.

The success of Estonia does not, however, rely solely on achievements in the digital world.

Our success has been based on the openness of our economy, low taxes, and a conservative budget. We are lucky to have had governments that have not changed the general liberal economic course. The voters have enabled a liberal economic policy both in the crisis years and economically better times.

As has been said by my predecessor, Andrus Ansip, the former Prime Minister of Estonia, and now a Vice President of the European Commission three years ago in a ceremony where he was awarded the prize of the international Friedrich August von Hayek Fund for the implementation of liberal economic policy: “You always have to be ready to make unpopular decisions. It must be understood that money does not allow playing with itself. We can afford ourselves really only this that we have created in reality. This means following the principle of a balanced budget.”

Retrospectively, we may note that exiting from the crisis has been more successful in countries where the governments have avoided unreasonable increase in the share of debt and kept deficit in their budgets small. I am also convinced that the measures advancing economic growth only function if the finances of the state are in order. Public services should not be financed through more debt. This is neither sustainable nor moral.

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It is regrettable that in the last months the European Union has not been able to focus on questions of economic growth. The significantly different security situation in Europe has left us with no other choices than to take into account the economic sanctions against Russia. Metaphorically said, it is not a temporary bad weather but a comprehensive climate change.

Even though our main military security guarantee and cooperation platform is NATO, the European Union also needs to adjust to the new situation and turn even more attention to security concerns in their wider meaning.

At the meeting of the European Council last December, the leaders of the European Union decided to increase the effectiveness, visibility, and impact of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), considering the changing strategic environment. I think that the CSDP should regularly be on the agenda of the meetings of the European Council.

We must always bear in mind that the backbones of the European Union are peace and stability. If this foundation is not secure, it is difficult to construct something permanent upon it. I am sincerely glad for the success of Estonia. The pillars of our state are steady.

Estonia became free without any gunshot. It built itself up as a flourishing country, having selected the road of liberal market economy, respectful of civil liberties.

Taavi Rõivas Prime Minister of Estonia Leader of the Reform Party

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History of enlargement In 1951, six countries founded the European Coal and Steel Community, and later, in 1957, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

In 1981, Greece became the 10th member and Spain and Portugal followed in 1986.

1951

1973

1981

1986

Croatia became the 28th country to join the EU, on 1 July 2013.

On 1 May 2004, 10 further countries joined the European Union: Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.

1995

2004

2007

2013

Two more followed in 2007: Bulgaria and Romania.

In 1995 Austria, Finland and Sweden joined.

Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom joined on 1 January 1973, raising the number of member states to nine.

There are currently six other countries with official candidate status: Albania, Iceland, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey.

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President’s Column

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The European Parliament elections brought a mixed crop of results: triumph in Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Netherlands; breakthrough in Austria, Slovakia, Czech Republic; unexpected gains on the Iberian Peninsula; and near wipeout in three of the EU’s largest member states Germany, the UK, and - more walkout than wipeout Romania. In another two, Poland and Italy, we elected nobody at all.

A big task for our Party will be to redefine Liberalism.

In too many countries our recipes for reform are failing to inspire.

Liberalism is associated either with an unpopular status quo or some of the ills of the past. Our response needs radical re-examination.

Where does all this leave us? Slipping from third to fourth place in the European Parliament, seeing our numbers in the College of European Commissioners fall, failing again to secure one of the EU ‘top jobs’.

It was not for want of effort. I take my hat off to Guy Verhofstadt and Olli Rehn, our spitzenkandidaten, for the huge energy they put into our campaign. They inspired thousands of activists across the EU to work harder. Our Party raised and spent more money than in any previous election campaign and our HQ team offered greater support to our member parties than ever before.

Nor was it for lack of ideas. Our manifesto, crisper and more concise, dissected the ills of the EU and prescribed credible remedies. Our party stood on the admirable records of our outgoing MEPs and our team of eight Commissioners.

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Congratulations to Sir Graham, who received the Freedom of the City of Gibraltar, the Rock’s highest honour, on 10 September, Gibraltar’s National Day.

The lighthouse of Gibraltar, at Europa Point

It was that in many countries our message struck no chord with the electorate. We were victims of a wave of populism as a political tsunami swept the British Isles, France and Italy. Three of the EU’s most populous countries became the most populist, returning to Brussels and Strasbourg fully one third of their MEPs from populist or extremist parties.

control of national governments we fail to offer a canvas of colours which convinces.

The European People’s Party swings with the tide, the anti-global left sells simplistic solutions, the Greens and other single-issue movements sap traditional support for the centre. Our response needs radical re-examination.

Under the circumstances we’ve done well. As the Liberal Bulletin goes to print we have three European Parliament committee chairs and two Vice Presidents of each of Parliament and the European Commission as well as Commissioners responsible for key portfolio’s such as trade, competition, justice, gender equality, energy union and digital single market. We still have four Liberal Prime Ministers around the European Council table and look set to gain another early next year.

But a big task for our Party will be to redefine Liberalism. In too many countries our recipes for reform are failing to inspire. Liberalism is associated either with an unpopular status quo or some of the ills of the past; rarely is it seen as an antidote to the ills of the present or a tonic for future recovery.

Our views on freedom of movement - of goods, services, capital and people - are at odds with the popular mood; our defence even of the free movement and free expression of ideas too often lacking a ready audience. On the big picture of global forces beyond the

Sir Graham Watson President of the ALDE Party

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Interview with: Lousewies van der Laan

The EU has a lot of leverage to reform countries for the better There should be more options to choose from between full EU membership and Europe standing powerless at the sidelines. Once Ukraine is stable and prosperous, say a very large Denmark, Europeans will be happy to welcome it.

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Throughout her professional and political career ALDE Party Vice President Lousewies van der Laan has worked hands-on to advance European integration. Whether as the spokesperson for the European Commissioner responsible for Enlargement or as a Member of the European Parliament and the Dutch Parliament and now living in Slovenia, one of Yugoslavia’s former republics. To honour her work, in June of this year, the Polish Republic decorated Mrs Van der Laan for her effort in making Poland’s accession to the European Union 10 years ago come true.

Liberal Bulletin: This summer, while Ukraine’s parliament prepared ratification of the country’s Association Agreement with the European Union - which aims to establish a comprehensive free trade area - a number of events have put the world’s spotlight on Ukraine and have led to a trade war between the EU and Russia. Should we now offer a clear perspective of membership to Ukraine?

Lousewies van der Laan: As a result of the conflicts, there are now voices that call for a swift process towards European Union membership of Ukraine. Those voices argue that Ukraine as an EU member could be transformed into a kind of Poland, a respected and stable member state with strong economic growth, and which

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is less vulnerable to the power games of Russian President Putin. If we look at the political and economic challenges facing new member states, it is clear to me that we need to rethink how we apply the criteria for membership and also how we apply our standards to the current member states. At the same time, the fact is that thousands of Ukrainians waving with European flags protested when they learnt that former President Yanukovych renounced the signing of the Association Agreement. The protest movement ‘Euromaidan’ demanded rapprochement with Europe, not Russia. When people want stability, prosperity and democracy we need to work with them on that, regard-

When people want stability, prosperity and democracy we need to work with them on that, regardless of whether that leads to full membership in the long run.

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less of whether that leads to full membership in the long run.

Do you believe European citizens are ready to accept Ukraine as a new member state?

It is questionable whether the Europeans are ready for a large, poor, corrupt country in the waiting room. There should be more options to choose from between full EU membership and Europe standing powerless at the sidelines to prevent Russia taking bites out of their land. Let’s make sure that the integrity of Ukraine’s territory is restored and the Association Agreement will be a success, with access to each other’s markets, with standards dutifully adapted to Europe, to bring more prosperity and hope for Ukrainians. It seems, that a large part of the Ukrainians hope that the signing of the agreement is a first step towards the direction of European integration, bringing the country in line with a long tradition of integration of which I had the privilege to witness from up close. Once Ukraine is stable and prosperous, say a very large Denmark, Europeans will be happy to welcome it.

Looking back, what were the biggest challenges of the 1995 enlargement with Austria, Finland and Sweden?

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It was the first EU enlargement that I witnessed myself as an EU official. Neutral states during the Cold War, Austria, Finland and Sweden used the opportunity of the collapse of the Soviet Union to join the EU. For those three countries the big challenges were not the fundamentals of democracy, free press or the rule of law, rather fishing quotas and the Swedish state monopoly on alcohol. All questions were resolved within only 13 months, driven by the geostrategic fear that the Russians might well change their mind and this historic opportunity could prove short-lived.

To prepare further EU enlargement after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the EU member states agreed upon the ‘Copenhagen Criteria’ in 1993. Why are these so important? Are they sufficient to integrate a new member state in the EU? When the former Eastern bloc countries and others, all very different in nature and history, signed up en masse to join the European Union after the fall of the Berlin Wall, EU leaders quickly realised that these applications could not be treated as those of Sweden, Finland and Austria. Three criteria where therefore established, the Copenhagen Criteria, which must be met before a state can become a member i adopting current European legislation (the acquis communautaire), ii being a fully-fledged democracy and iii having a functioning market economy. Given the fact that the EU is a political project, however, European leaders, led by former German chancellor Helmut Kohl sped up the accession process, making dates prevail over criteria. That created a dangerous precedent. Before accession, the EU has a lot of leverage to reform countries for the better.

Once a country has become a member state, that leverage is gone. If they don’t follow the criteria anymore, we do not have an extensive mechanism to deal with it.

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In 2003, observer MEPs from the 10 states that were about to become a member state of the EU, were welcomed to the European Parliament to learn the tricks of what it’s like being a Member of the European Parliament.

How do you remember those days?

It was obvious that the observer MEPs who joined our group in those days shared with us their passion for freedom and political pluralism, having developed during the times of the Soviet occupation a strong antipathy for the collectivist approach of communism, which totally dehumanises the individual. We can also see a different attitude towards Russia: in my view the Eastern Europeans are less naive than many Western European countries towards Russia’s intentions.

Did we learn from the EU’s 2004 enlargement in subsequent enlargements to Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania?

If we look at the political and economic challenges facing new member states, it is clear to me that we need to rethink how we apply the criteria for membership and also how we apply our standards to the current member states.

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While there were strong political arguments to enlarge in 2007, I fear that the focus of political decision makers in those days was again on agreeing the date, not on the substance of the matter, meeting the Criteria. The interesting thing about the EU is that it is quite difficult to become a member these days, but once you are in, a member state can do whatever it likes without having to fear major sanctions.

Today’s Hungary would never have been allowed to join, but the limited press freedom in Berlusconi’s Italy wouldnt have made it past the Copenhagen criteria.

What key advice would you like to give to current decision-makers?

I believe in the EU’s enlargement. The carrot of membership has greatly advanced a number of European countries and brought more democracy, freedom and prosperity to our continent. However, if we honestly admit that there are political reasons for speeding up membership, we should consider to roll out the privileges that come with membership more gradually, and only grant them once a new member state meets the criteria. In this sense, Ukraine could join tomorrow, but would not get access to funding, markets, free movement etc until the criteria were met. In addition, we should strengthen the mechanisms we have to ensure that current members respect these same rules.

In my opinion, the European Union is a community of values, which should respect human rights and dignity, enjoy a lively democracy and uphold the rule of law. I am aware that this ambition raises the bar for membership significantly, but we liberals believe in these values and we should never be afraid to promote them at home and across our continent.

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Reminiscing my first steps in the Liberal group As we mark 10 years since the accession of 10 countries to the EU, former MEP and Hungarian ambassador to Slovenia István Szent-Iványi reflects on this period and his impressions of entering the European Parliament.

I have very good memories from 2003 and 2004, of my first humble steps in - what was then called - the ELDR group and in the European Parliament as an observer MEP. I cannot deny that I entered the building of the Parliament with high expectations and deep worries. Although I already knew many members of the group and the Parliament from previous years, including good friends like Graham Watson, Andrew Duff, Jules Maaten and Annemie Neyts, it was a completely different matter to work closely together on a daily basis.

My concerns disappeared very soon as I had two fantastic guardian angels in the group who came to the rescue. They helped me, taught me and supported me a lot. Two amazing characters Cecilia Malmström and Lousewies van der Laan were really very instructive and supportive. Lousewies is a very powerful lady, full of élan, vital and energy.

She has taught me to be more assertive, straightforward and brave. Cecilia is a soft

power, very empathic, attentive, and more lenient.

At the beginning we were satisfied with our role as observers, but our appetite had grown and many of us wanted to really contribute to the work of the European Parliament. But the regulations were strict: we could not write and submit amendments under our own names.

From the first minute, Lousewies considered me and my fellow observers as colleagues and not as apprentices. She wanted to involve us in all topical issues and discussions as a real partner. She gave us very useful advice in our work and what to do after work hours. She recommended me some really fine and good places in Strasbourg, like l’Aviateur and some others. Lousewies, many thanks again for your kindness.

In 2004, before the European elections I wanted to organise a workshop in the European Parliament on migration. As an observer, I was not entitled to organise this. But with the - 13 -

help of the Liberal group I managed to realise my initiative, supposedly as the first and only observer. I remember that my fellow observers from the other groups were very envious for this privilege I have been granted by the group.

Of course, not everything was nice and perfect. Our offices were located in the Salvador de Madariaga building in Strasbourg. This building has a beehive shape, but for me it was a real labyrinth. I was going around several times in vain, trying to find the right way.

After the elections in 2004 I returned as a real Member of the European Parliament. I noticed my promotion clearly from the fact that I could start tabling amendments of my own.

Dr. István Szent-Iványi Ambassador of Hungary in Slovenia Former observer MEP and Member of the European Parliament 2004-2009

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We want a Europe that is built upon the foundations that were laid in the four freedoms, the freedoms in which we were born, raised and from which we cannot, and will not, go back.

There is no higher value than our freedom A new LYMEC Bureau has just begun its mandate, right in time to join the rest of the Union in making a fresh start. The new setup in the key EU institutions gives us a unique opportunity to act and put forward liberal policies in the best interest of the new generations.

It is also an opportunity to reshape and reform the Union and address the burning issues of its efficiency, effectiveness and democratic deficit. EU needs a small, efficient and democratically legitimate executive in the Commission and accountable and transparent legislature of a single-seated Parliament, the Council and European Council. The failure to resolve these key issues in the previous mandates was clearly reflected in the outcome of the recent European elections, a low turnout of voters and their worrying flee to various populist platforms. As liberals, we should make the most of the circumstances and use the opportunity to present innovative and progressive political thinking both in the areas of institutional reform as well as in the development of European policies.

What is a primary and continuous focus of LYMEC, as a European liberal youth organisation, is a number one problem of the youth in Europe – unemployment. The economic crisis has left large parts of Europe with high unemployment rates, especially among youth.

Being in the age when you are about to lay down foundations of your life, acquire high quality education, find a fulfilling job and

have a decent living, it is indeed something which concerns us the most. Therefore the growth of our economy, deep and comprehensive reform and flexibility of our labour laws, as well as key economic and financial decisions such as trade agreements and regulation of financial markets are in focus of our interest, as they shape our economic, social and political environment for the long-term.

What we want is a growth-oriented, open and competitive Europe, which invests into research and innovation, new technologies, education and boosts the job creation. We want a Europe that is built upon the foundations that were laid in the four freedoms, the freedoms in which we were born, raised and from which we cannot, and will not, go back.

Still, the changing global environment of today wakes us up to the new challenges and new concerns of our generation. Emerging conflicts and prospects of war on the borders of Europe brought old issues to the surface.

The times when a primary concern of keeping peace was just a word in the history books or a punchline in the top charts of the EU values are gone. We are now facing serious security concerns and this is what we, as young people, do care a lot about. The EU as a community which preserved peace on our continent, should indeed act to provide it for our generation and generations to come. Therefore efficient and rapid action in crisis areas, as well as putting security of our Europe on the agenda

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is indeed a priority for LYMEC. One way of taking our security into account is also the continuation of the European enlargement policy as a way of economic, political and security consolidation of our continent. At the same time, security today is not only security from physical threat, but also includes modern-day concerns such as energy and cyber security, the fields where progress is possible only with common action on an EU level.

The key concerns of economic recession and higher security demands, if not handled carefully, might pose threats to our basic value the freedom of the individual. Therefore in the coming two-year mandate LYMEC will also continue to voice our concerns whenever institutions or governments breach citizens’ rights, privacy and basic freedoms. For liberals there is no higher value than our freedom.

Citizens, old and young, should have trust in us that we will never take their rights and freedoms for granted.

Having these political priorities in mind, LYMEC will seek to widen the areas of liberal values around Europe and welcome new organisations and liberal individuals who are sharing our ideas and are ready to stand by us in our fight for a more liberal Europe.

Vedrana Gujic President of LYMEC, the European Liberal Youth

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save the date

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Liberal Bulletin - second ISSUE - 2014

Associate members corner Is there such a thing as European citizenship?

I think most Europeans and certainly all our readers are intellectually speaking pro-Europeans. The European Union has provided mechanisms for peaceful conflict resolution and institutions fostering growth. On the other hand however, most European citizens and maybe many of us do not feel emotionally attached to the EU. Nowadays, the EU and its institutions do not inspire loyalty or a feeling of belonging. If I had to name one major difference between a state and the EU, this is probably what I would stress – citizens in the EU do not feel attached to it. There is no such thing as EU patriotism, except maybe amongst a few. And there is certainly no European demos in the sense of a community of people. This fact has been worsened by the economic downturn of the past six years.

To overcome this challenge, EU leaders have proposed various strategies to create a sense of community amongst Europeans. But most of these instruments are only scratching on the surface of things or serve as mere window-dressing. A flag, a hymn, a TV channel, etcetera are all nice things to have, but they will not be sufficient to create a sense of be-

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longing and certainly not to form a community of citizens.

Yet, what exactly are we talking about when discussing the construction of a European citizenship? Citizenship has three distinctive, though interlinked, dimensions. Firstly, as a legal status. Secondly, as the participation in a political system. And, finally, as the member-

Creating a shared sense of community in the EU will not happen overnight. But maybe the ALDE Party can contribute to the progressive involvement of citizens.

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Liberal Bulletin - second ISSUE - 2014

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS

ship in or belonging to a political community.

According to Jürgen Habermas, this third dimension of citizenship – the sense of community – stems from the practice of citizenship rights, meaning the participation in a political system. This is what he called “constitutional patriotism”. A sense of belonging based on the exercise of political rights and participation can best be observed in countries like the United States, Canada or Switzerland.

In the case of the EU, we rapidly see that although it fulfils the condition of granting a legal status and a set of rights, the second and third definition of citizenship cannot be applied to the EU, at least not fully.

So how can European citizenship, that is the sense of community, be enhanced beyond mere window-dressing measures? As liberals we certainly ought to advocate for a com-

munity based on the respect for diversity. A unitary or unified identity would not be representative of the history and the people of Europe. Second, the EU must become a union of citizens, not merely of states. A more democratic union, as EU leaders like to call it, should increase the participation of European citizens in decision-making, be it through enhanced power for the European Parliament and/or through more involvement of national parliaments. Increased participation of citizens should also include a larger say in the formation of the European Commission.

More concretely, increased participation is only possible if the EU is thoroughly reformed, bureaucracy is brought to a minimum and the institutions start to focus on what really matters. The EU ought to start focussing on future-oriented policies. But for that to hap- 17 -

pen, member state governments will have to give up part of their power, or at least share the competences of the European Council with the European Parliament in more areas than they currently do.

Creating a shared sense of community in the EU will not happen overnight. But maybe the ALDE Party can contribute to the progressive involvement of citizens and their participation in EU policy-making through the involvement of individual members working for the advancement of liberal ideas and policies throughout Europe.

Julie Cantalou Chair of the steering committee of the ALDE Party associate individual members

Liberal Bulletin - second ISSUE - 2014

Liberal movers and shakers the next European Commission special

Andrus Ansip was Europe’s longest serving head of government, having entered the position in 2005. He was elected as an MEP in May and is Estonia’s nominee for the next Commission. He will be a Commission Vice President and responsible for the Digital Internal Market. * Slovenia’s first female Prime Minister, Alenka Bratušek took her seat in the National Parliament in 2011 after a career in the finance ministry.

She formed a new party earlier this year and won a seat in Parliament again following snap elections. She is Slovenia’s nominee and will be a Commission Vice President, responsible for Energy Union. * Věra Jourová is the deputy leader of the ANO Party from the Czech Republic, with an extensive experience in the EU’s regional development programmes. She is also an expert of EU regional funding, having worked as a consultant in this area.

She will be the Czech Republic’s first female member of the European Commission.

She will be responsible for Justice, Consumer policy and Gender Equality. * Cecilia Malmström has done well as the current European Commissioner for Home Affairs, dealing with challenging asylum and migration issues. She has previously also served as Member for the European Parliament and Minister of EU affairs in Sweden. She was nominated for another term as Sweden’s Commissioner.

She will be responsible for Trade. * Margrethe Vestager, the outgoing leader of the Danish social liberal party Radikale Venstre, served as Deputy Prime Minister as well as Minister for Economic and Interior Affairs, making her a key player in the Danish government.

She is Denmark’s nominee, and will be responsible for Competition. * *subject to approval by the European Parliament - 18 -

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