Mal Fletcher gives a balanced overview.



Continued from page 3

It likes to play the champion of democracy, yet when voters in Ireland, France and the Netherlands rejected an EU treaty a few years ago, Europe sidestepped the issue and went ahead anyway.

That perceived arrogance and lack of accountability are two of the biggest reasons why Europeans, though largely proud of their Europeanness, are not more supportive and enthusiastic about the EU as an institution.

Because there are large cultural differences in attitudes to many things, a certain amount of fluidity is going to have to be a key feature of the EU's future.

Whether that future takes the form of a permanently two-tier Europe, or three-or-four tier Europe, or a one-tier Europe with space for debate and variation on specific issues, I don't know.

What we must not forget in all this, however, is that the EU is often called the 'European experiment'. And that's precisely what it is - an experiment unique in human history.

As such, it will require that we find fresh approaches to challenges. Our political leaders will need to strive for unity - with diversity - in ways that may not have been attempted before.

Falling back on the notion that centralising power is the best solution to all problems will not be good enough!

Meanwhile, the rest of us, the citizenry, will need to remember that politics is not the solution to everything. Centralising power often produces more problems than it solves and bureaucracies tend to grow to fit the space we, over time, allow for them.

The decision about whether Britain should remain within the EU is one of the most important in our generation.

My heart hopes that the UK will remain within the EU, but my head wants to see it allow for more national sovereignty and accountability, which are cornerstones of modern democracy. CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.