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A failure of storytelling is stoking identity politics in Europe – Financial Times

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I have been supporting European integration ever since I can remember. But I have also become increasingly appalled by the poverty of the pro-European discourse. There is a failure to speak truth to power, grandstanding rhetoric, scaremongering and a trend towards European identity politics. These may all be failures of storytelling but they also affect policy indirectly. Part of the rise in Euroscepticism in countries such as Italy is due to this confused narrative.

By truth to power, I mean constructive criticism from friends. Europeans are not good at that. We are either pro or anti. I cannot count the number of times during the eurozone crisis when I met with pro-European economists and other academics who expressed private criticism of EU policies but could never themselves say it in public. They valued their access to policy circles and funding.

Readiness to speak truth to power is especially important in the relationships between EU leaders. The eurozone would be in a better place today if the prime ministers of the south had told the leaders of the north during the eurozone crisis that the unsustainable cannot last.

My second category is vacuous grandstanding — the set-piece speeches by European leaders in magisterial surroundings of grand European universities. Emmanuel Macron started his term as French president with a speech at the Sorbonne in 2017, where he laid out his agenda for Europe. Virtually all of his proposals for a “European renaissance” have since been shredded to bits.

I fear we may be go through the same ritual in the current debate about the European recovery fund. The idea started as a federalist scheme and will probably shrink to subatomic size. By the time it appears and we can inspect it, it will be gone.

Hans Kundnani, from the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London, has made the observation that leaders such as Mr Macron talk about European sovereignty. But this is a barren concept, devoid of meaning unless backed up by institutional reform.

Confused language comes from confused concepts, which leads to confused decisions. Europeans do not think in geostrategic terms. They are relationship people. Italian finance ministers never walk out of meetings, even when they should. French presidents do sometimes, as Charles de Gaulle did in 1965 when his EU boycott caused the so-called “empty chair crisis”. But French presidents always end up with German chancellors.

My third category are the scare stories, a 21st-century reincarnation of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales. We had a lot of those during the Brexit years. They are dangerous narratives because intruding events can easily turn them upside down.

The Covid-19 pandemic will blur perceptions of the predicted losses from a hard Brexit transition. And if a narrative develops elsewhere in the EU that Brexit turned into an unlikely economic success, beware of its imitators. The main lesson for the EU of the failed Remain campaign is the need to reacquaint ourselves with the art of the positive argument.

Finally, beware of the fanboys. Some might see it as a sign of maturity that the EU, too, now has its support network of hooligans on social networks. I do not.

Identity politics is toxic for the European discourse. The Remain campaign created a narrative that conflated Europeaness with notions of being young, progressive and urban, while portraying anti-Europeans as old, uneducated and rural. Sectarian division is not in the interest of the EU because it alienates social groups that the EU needs: middle-of-the-roaders who dislike flag-waving, ninth-symphony-chanting European symbolism.

The EU’s founding fathers, like the Frenchmen Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman, did not belong to that category. If Schuman were alive today, I suspect he would be horrified at the way the EU messed up monetary integration. I am not even sure he would attend the self-congratulatory annual celebrations of his famous declaration 70 years ago. The EU policy establishment spends far too much time in ceremonies and awarding each other prizes. It has developed qualities of a cult.

All of the above is about stories and symbols. Yet it is the stories we keep telling that influence policy. It will be hard to persuade northern Europeans of the virtues of fiscal integration if they view the austerity policies of the eurozone crisis as a huge success, as some do.

Elsewhere, what people may remember most from the episode is the 52 per cent rise in Greek suicide rates between 2010 and 2016, or the insensitive comments of a former Dutch finance minister and the current one.

If you want to defeat Euroscepticism, get your story straight first. You may then find it easier to sell your policies.

munchau@eurointelligence.com

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‘Disgraceful:’ N.S. Tory leader slams school’s request that military remove uniform

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.

Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.

A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”

Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.

“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.

In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”

“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”

Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.

Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.

Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.

“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.

“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.

“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”

Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.

“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”

“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Saskatchewan NDP’s Beck holds first caucus meeting after election, outlines plans

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REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.

Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.

She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.

Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.

Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.

The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Nova Scotia election: Liberals say province’s immigration levels are too high

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.

Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.

“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.

“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”

The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.

In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.

“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”

In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.

“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”

Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.

Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.

“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”

In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.

In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.

“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”

Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.

“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”

The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.

“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.

“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

— With files from Keith Doucette in Halifax

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