EU bandwagon rolls on despite wobbly wheels

Richard North has picked up a stimulating commentary on Ireland's problems by an Irish economist. Ireland is heading for bankruptcy, which would be catastrophic for a country that trades on its reputation as a safe place to do business, he writes:

Irish politicians are too used to being rewarded by Brussels to start fighting against it, even if it is a matter of national survival. It is easier to be led along blindfold until the noose is slipped around our necks and we are kicked through the trapdoor into bankruptcy.

The destruction wrought by the bankruptcy will not just be economic but political. Just as the Lenihan bailout destroyed Fianna Fáil, so the Noonan bankruptcy will destroy Fine Gael and Labour, leaving them as reviled and mistrusted as their predecessors. And that will leave Ireland in the interesting situation where the economic crisis has chewed up and spat out all of the State’s constitutional parties. The last election was reassuringly dull and predictable but the next, after the trauma and chaos of the bankruptcy, will be anything but.

Oh, and Greece is on fire again. Fancy a relaxing break in Athens, which would help their economy along? Thought not. And if they get more money from EU taxpayers, that will only make Greek economic and political problems worse. No one has suggested a plausible view of how the Greeks could repay without defaulting.

Behind the rhetoric, it looks increasingly likely that the central eurozone are picking their time to ditch Greece and Ireland. Don't throw good money after bad, says the True Finns' Timo Soini.

This is not just about economics. People feel betrayed. In Ireland, the incoming parties to the new government promised to hold senior bondholders responsible, but under pressure they succumbed, leaving their voters with a sense of disenfranchisement. The elites in Brussels have said that Finland must honor its commitments to its European partners, but Brussels is silent on whether national politicians should honor their commitments to their own voters.

Despite these wobbly wheels, the EU Commission is apparently considering compulsory driving tests every two years for motorists aged 60 plus and annually for those 76 and over, in the interests of uniformity across the EU. You can really really see Portugal, Greece, Spain, Italy, Romania and Bulgaria implementing this....

Meanwhile, the Commission working on the spat between Italy and France over immigrants and borders. Schengen threatened? No problem. It can be another "useful crisis". Let's shoehorn into our review proposals to create a common EU asylum and immigration policy.

Mrs. Malmstrom proposed setting up centres outside the EU that would be authorized to grant visas valid for the entire union, and offering trade concessions and visas for skilled workers in countries like Tunisia in exchange for a tougher clampdown by their governments on outward migration.

You might think countries like Portugal, Spain and Ireland might not welcome more competitors for their dwindling supply of jobs. But the Brussels bandwagon powers on regardless.

It really is out of control.