Brexit is no wake-up call for European Parliament

A significant majority of the European Parliament has approved the strategic priorities of the 2017 European Commission working programme. “Incomprehensible,” European Parliament member Anneleen Van Bossuyt comments. “After all, the text is riddled with more of the same.” It explains why the N-VA did not approve of that same text. “It seems the British referendum has not served as a wake-up call for the European Parliament,” Anneleen Van Bossuyt states regretfully.

“The tone of the text is clear: more Europe and more decision-making via the Community method. In other words, an even bigger role for the Commission and the Parliament and an even smaller role for the member states,” Anneleen Van Bossuyt explains. And it doesn’t stop at the tone. For example, further European expansion is also advocated, as well as European taxes and a bigger European budget. “The traditional parties opt for the leap toward a federal Europe and appear deaf to the still clanging alarm sounded with the British referendum.”

Winning hearts

Nonetheless, the Parliament explicitly stated that we must win the hearts of the Europeans. “But in this way, we are not going to win a single citizen for Europe, quite the opposite,” Anneleen Van Bossuyt fears. “Has the European Parliament really not learnt from the outcome of the British referendum? More and more national politicians are asking for more eurorealism, just as the N-VA has done for time out of mind. No European pipe dreams, more pragmatism and more common sense. Another missed opportunity,” she concludes.