The European Union goes south!

By which I mean that Angela Merkel, at last, has decided to loosen her grip on the EU purse strings. Despite the moans and groans from the ‘frugal four’,  Austria, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands who are virulently opposed to permitting the EU hierarchy to borrow money at will because they know that it will be a green light for the catholic South to spend it like drunken sailors - money for which they will be partly - if not wholly! - responsible.

Of course, the devil - or perhaps the angel! - in this will be, as always, in the detail.  I simply cannot believe that 'Mutti' Merkel would surrender the keys to the European treasury.  Konstantin Eckner puts it this way in 'The Spectator' with my emphasis:

After the mortal shock of Brexit, the EU tried to show confidence about the future. Brussels tried to punch above its weight, taking on tech giants like Google and Apple. But now the pandemic has transformed the EU from policymaker into big money spender. This means Germany’s council presidency will revolve around two questions: Can the EU cushion the economic effects of the crisis? And can the member states agree on the EU budget for the next seven years? The budget for the entirety of that period will be in the ballpark of 1.1 trillion euros (£1 trillion). 

Of course, the Covid pandemic has caused massive financial problems everywhere including 'this septic Isle' but we are a sovereign country capable, eventually, of working our way through it.  The European Union is not!  The strains and anguish will be immense and will take them to the very edge of the precipice.

Thank God we're out of it!

 

 

Comments

[Scroblene]

Once the UK troughers started making squillions out of membership, I realised that I'd never see anything of the cash, so might just as well support 'depart' soonest!

Scrobs is occasionally right in these matters.

[David Duff]

Quite right, Scrobbers, always follow the money!

[Richard]

Shouldn't that sign read 'Bundeskaiserin?'

[Loz]

The only "UK troughers" making squillions out of EU membership were the ordinary Brits who'd never been so prosperous and free in their lives or in the whole history of Blighty.

If "follow the money" is your what you were after with Brexit, Gaffer, you've taken a wrong turn. Like the Labour treasury official who left the note saying "I'm afraid there is no money left" Blighty will be begging the IMF for a bailout like it did back in 1976 in due course.

The EU will fare better than Blighty precisely because it is NOT a centralised re-elected dictatorship like Blighty but a Confederacy of sovereign states each able to attend to its own Covid fallout problems.

In the same way the US will recover too, and very quickly, due to its federal multi-state architecture - aided and abetted by the Don's massive tax cuts a year or two back.

Like multiple pistons on a cam-shaft, if one goes in the EU or US the others can carry it. But with one stroke Blighty and a farcial circus like Dombo in charge the whole engine will seize up with no-one to carry us.

SoD