How to relaunch the EU

As Britain pulls the trigger on exit negotiations from the European Union, the one thing the bloc’s remaining 27 members can agree on is that it’s in dire need of an overhaul. POLITICO asked seven European leaders: If there’s one thing you could change about the EU, what would it be?

* * *

Make elections European again

We must emerge from the Treaty of Rome anniversary celebrations by taking a step forward for European democracy and include a larger number of citizens in European decisions. There’s an easy way to do this: Instead of eliminating the 73 British seats in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, transform them into European seats.

We would vote for these 73 seats in an EU-wide election. That would ensure that the 2019 European elections are truly European, with a continental constituency and representatives who express the will of the bloc’s 400 million citizens and are not just an extension of national politics.

Enrico Letta is a former prime minister of Italy.

* * *

Do more with less

We embarked on this European project because we wanted to tackle big challenges. But we have become really good at tackling small things. We have defined how much water a toilet can flush, but we haven’t managed to come up with real answers when it comes to foreign policy, security or immigration. That’s because we do not have a real Union. Instead, we have a loose confederation of member countries that gets lost in the details.

Europe has to become more efficient and more relevant. We do not need 27 commissioners producing bureaucratic details, for example, if we don’t have 27 portfolios to cover. What we need instead is a small, efficient European government. Unifying Europe does not automatically mean a bigger Europe.

Today, we have to deal with Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Brexit. It is time to get the EU working again — by doing more with less.

Guy Verhofstadt, European parliamentary group leader for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), is the Parliament’s Brexit negotiator. He was prime minister of Belgium from 1999-2008.

* * *

Commit to European defense

We need to work together for a Europe that is more united and attentive to the needs of all its citizens, for a Europe able to affirm its social and cultural identity while respecting diversity, one that is able to break down ideological barriers and offer answers to our era’s most pressing concerns: growth, employment, immigration and security.

The EU played a key role in peace, reconciliation, democracy and economic development. Now more than ever, as the Union faces great risks and difficulties, we are called on to ensure that it continues to be a guardian of peace and prosperity for our children and all generations to come. We must not flinch from the challenge.

The election result in the Netherlands demonstrates that there is still ample room for those who still believe Europe can be the solution.

We must start with the creation of a common defense policy, one that does not stand in opposition to NATO, but to the contrary, enhances our participation in the alliance and strengthens our capacity to respond effectively to the threats emanating from the South. In addition to increasing security, this will also have important impacts on industry and employment.

The election result in the Netherlands demonstrates that there is still ample room for those who, with a critical spirit and a desire for innovation and change, still believe Europe can be the solution and is not, therefore, part of the problem. It is from this knowledge, this renewed confidence in herself, that Europe can and must start again.

Angelino Alfano is the foreign minister of Italy.

* * *

Remember our founding values

When I think of Europe, I think of the simple dreams it held for me growing up on the other side of the Iron Curtain: human dignity, freedom, democracy. Back then, those dreams were forbidden and we looked West toward a free and unified Europe, sensing that it held the key to our future.

Today, this freedom is no longer a dream but an everyday reality for millions of people. Perhaps that is why we have forgotten that nothing is granted forever. That it is much easier to destroy than to build.

When our forefathers created this alliance, they didn’t talk about different speeds or make exceptions for certain members. They placed all their faith in European leaders’ desire to work together. Now, as our unity is tested under the strain of difficult challenges, the only way forward is to reaffirm our unity and recall the union’s original raison d’être.

The European project will either survive as a unified alliance or not at all. We must safeguard what we’ve built and respect our common rules: human rights and civil liberties, freedom of speech and assembly, checks and balances, and the rule of law.

Donald Tusk is the president of the European Council.

* * *

Create common ground

The EU has a lot of work to do — both on the emotional and the rational level.

Europe needs a stronger narrative — its people need more common stories, shared experiences, heroes to love and look up to. The Portuguese should share in Scandinavian jokes, and Latvians should learn to sing French chansons. At a time when our Union faces internal challenges from populist movements and neo-totalitarian regimes, we musn’t forget that culture and the arts can be forceful weapons and help cultivate an EU identity that reaches deeper than the laws and regulations we share.

On the policy level, the EU’s value-added tax system is fragmented and inefficient, giving tax evaders and money launderers plenty of wiggle room while costing member countries far too much. The overall difference between expected VAT revenue and what is actually collected is enormous. The EU should create a common arrangement for a reverse charge VAT system that is simpler, business-friendly and fraud-proof. Enhancing cross-border cooperation and exchanging information on this type of issue is exactly the kind of work on which the EU should focus its resources.

Dana Reizniece-Ozola is the finance minister of Latvia.

* * *

Stop making exceptions

As confidence in the European project continues to plummet, Brussels presented a “white paper” on five scenarios for its future and European heads of state celebrated the 60th anniversary of the founding Treaty of Rome. But how about we first agree to abide by the existing treaties, such as the Stability and Growth Pact, which is meant to guarantee the euro’s stability?

The European Commission should want nothing less than for all countries to fully abide by its rules. Unfortunately, it too often chooses to turn a blind eye. We see countries, such as France, getting off scot-free when it doesn’t follow the rules. Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said exceptions were granted “because it is France.”

This kind of behavior damages the Commission’s credibility — and the Union’s as a whole.

This kind of behavior damages the Commission’s credibility — and the Union’s as a whole. Instead of celebrating treaties and coming up with grand ideas for new ones, the Commission should ensure that countries do what they have signed up to do. Only equal treatment for all members will restore people’s confidence in the EU.

Anne Mulder is a member of parliament in the Netherlands, and spokesman of European affairs for the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD).

* * *

Get savvy on digital

The European Union urgently needs to concentrate on issues that matter to its citizens, for whom decision-making at the European level represents true added value. We have to be able to take decisions in a swifter way without losing sight of the dizzying speed at which economic and social changes take place today. Too often, the EU’s machinery has been too slow to respond to current challenges.

The European project needs a more global perspective. We will only advance to the extent that we are capable of working together and agreeing on common policies in areas such as security and defense, banking, immigration and climate change. Enhancing the bloc’s single market — and the digital single market, which is its greatest accelerator — will be crucial in this regard. Sixty years after the Treaty of Rome, our world is defined by digital transformation. Europe will only be able to successfully overcome the challenges of this change if it can complete its work on the digital single market before we fall behind.

Pilar del Castillo is a Spanish member of the European People’s Party and the rapporteur on the telecoms single market in the European Parliament.