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Matelly, S.  “A very political rentrée”, Newsletter, Jacques Delors Institute, September 2024

I’m sure you’ll agree that it was a hot summer, at least as much for politics as for the weather in Europe. On the political front, it was perhaps and paradoxically, since the period followed the European elections, less hot in Brussels than elsewhere. At the heart of the European institutions, the new MEPs were settling in, and the committees were being set up, without much fanfare apart from the creation of a new far-right group, the Patriots for Europe, which became the third largest political force in the European Parliament. After her re-election on 18 July following the presentation of her political priorities, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen set about forming her college of commissioners.

The political heat came from elsewhere rather than Brussels. By contrast, in France first of all, when less than one hour after the first results from the European polls, the French President decided to dissolve the National Assembly and to call legislative elections. Less than a month later, the elections failed to produce a majority for any party, putting a long-term hold on the appointment of a new government and, by the same token, on political decisions and any reforms. Also in Europe, in Germany, where the government coalition now seems to be in more difficulty than ever. And the recent regional elections have made it even more fragile, if that is possible. The ‘Alternative for Germany’ (AfD) party won a historic election in Thuringia (the party’s first victory in a regional election) and is now in second place, just behind the conservatives in Saxony.

These political instabilities in two countries, both founding members of the European Community and driving forces behind European integration, are hardly reassuring given that the coming months promise to be decisive in many respects. What’s more, it’s not good news for Europe at a time when the new Commission is being set up and when the challenges facing Europeans are crucial to their future, from the war in Ukraine, the stalling of the European economy, enlargement and relations with the rest of the world in general, and with China and Africa in particular.

Finally, on the other side of the Atlantic, it was in the United States that the summer was once again full of surprises. After the assassination attempt that could have cost him his life, Donald Trump went to his party’s convention at the end of July looking better than ever. Convinced of his fortune, he took the opportunity to appoint a running mate, a pale carbon copy of what he is and stands for… That was without counting on the unexpected withdrawal of Joe Biden, who on 21st July renounced his bid for a second term as President. He passed the baton to his vice-president Kamala Harris. The enthusiasm unleashed by this new candidacy was at least as unexpected as the President’s own withdrawal, and resulted in a swing in the polls in favour of the Democrats. Unsurprisingly nominated at the Democratic Convention in Chicago at the end of August, her candidacy gave renewed hope to a large part of America and also to Europe. However, we will have to wait until November to find out who will govern the United States for the next 4 years…

And after such a summer, the European autumn will be dominated by the formation of the new Commission, the inauguration of its President and Commissioners, the High Representative, Kaja Kallas, and the President of the European Council, António Costa. Their task promises to be an onerous one, and one that will certainly be complicated by the challenges that lie ahead, which are a veritable rendez-vous with history. Not only the Jacques Delors Institute, but also our two sisters in Berlin and Brussels are already engaged in the reflection process to come up with useful and constructive proposals, always inspired by the vision of Jacques Delors.

In their recent analysis, for example, “Sufficiency, the year after“, Phuc-Vinh Nguyen and Fiona Breucker explain how, in terms of energy sobriety, for example, France needs to move from crisis management in response to soaring fossil fuel prices to a fully-fledged policy that can be sustained over the long term. Similarly, in their Policy Brief “Capital Markets Union: Europe must stop beating around the bush“, our colleagues in Berlin, Sebastian Mack and Johannes Lindner, list the conditions that still need to be met for the successful integration of Europe’s financial markets. Finally, the centre Jacques Delors in Brussels, in its article “Towards a sustainable agri-food system in Europe Lessons from the last EU mandate and strategies for the future“, proposes policy options to support, improve and adapt the EU’s current greening programme.

Sylvie Matelly 

Director of the Jacques Delors Institute