Macron calls for EU 'renaissance' to fight populism in upcoming vote
French President Emmanuel Macron has laid out proposals for a more united European Union and called for a “renaissance” in the bloc as he tries to fight off the rising populist threat in the upcoming elections to the European parliament.
In an address to “the citizens of Europe” published in multiple newspapers on Tuesday, Macron wrote: “Never since the second world war has Europe been so necessary. And yet Europe has never been so much in danger.”
Macron lashed out at the “trap” of Brexit, which he said symbolises the current social crisis that Europe as a whole was facing: “Who told the British the truth about the post-Brexit future? Who spoke to them about losing access to the European market? Who mentioned the risks for peace in Ireland of going back to the old border? The withdrawal into nationalism goes nowhere. It’s just a rejection without a plan. And this trap threatens the whole of Europe”.
Macron’s latest European initiative focused on three main areas: defending liberty and electoral democracy; protecting the continent through joint defence programmes and stronger borders and reforming EU policies and rules on everything from industrial competition to the environment.
His proposals included penalties or a ban on companies that failed to comply with environmental norms, online data protection or fair tax payments and a preferential treatment for local companies in strategic industries and public procurement “as is done by our American and Chinese competitors”.
He also said the EU should be open to reviewing its founding treaties and even amending them if necessary.
Regarding climate change, he said the bloc should comply with a target for zero net carbon emissions by 2050, halving pesticides by 2025 and setting up a climate bank to manage the cost of transitioning to renewable energies.
Macron’s address came less than a month from the UK’s anticipated exit from the EU and three months ahead of the European elections that some observers believed threatened to bring to power populist forces who supported nationalist agendas such as Brexit.