by
Martin Banks
Papandreou described tackling climate change as "humanity's biggest challenge." He said, "Today, we can easily wreck the planet and destroy our own civilisation.Yet this could also become an area of unprecedented global cooperation." Papandreou also called on the EU to do more to tackle poverty saying "income and wealth inequalities corrode the chances for a just society." "The concentration of power by the few has captured if not corrupted our democratic institutions, bringing huge frustration to our citizens."
Papandreou, who served as PM in Greece from 2009 to 2011, was addressing the annual conference of the European Association for Public Consultants.
He said the world was characterised by "uncertainty and insecurity." A result of this, he said, was the rise of populist political parties like FN in France and UKIP. Papandreou, who is now president of Socialist International, told the audience, "Yes,populists may be right in highlighting problems but do they have the right solutions?" He also said Europe was witnessing the "end of the North Atlantic Age."
The politician, who resigned as Greek PM in November 2011 at the height of the Greek debt crisis, added,"It has been eclipsed by East Asia. In the 1990s,China was 6 per cent of the world's economy, today it is 23 per cent. At its pinnacle the US was 40 per cent of the world economy and today it is 23 per cent." "The recent phenomena of populism is not limited to the West - but it is the West that seems to be a in a new political turmoil and its sense of decline is one reason."
The two-day EAPC eventalso looked at the role of political consultants in the decision making process.
Speaking at the same event, Howard Dean, a former presidential candidate in the US, compared resident Trump to Marine Le Pen, the right wing Front National leader and MEP. Dean made the comparison in a debate on the rise of populism across Europe. Dean, who remains a leading member of the Democrat party in the US, also made a robust defence of the EU, adding, "it is important we have this kind of institutional defence against the forces of populism and the likes of Trump and Le Pen."
Trump recently returned to the US after what his first overseas tour that included a visit to Brussels and the new NATO headquarters last Thursday. President Trump has, particularly during the election campaign, been vocal in his criticism of the EU. Dean described the increasing popularity of parties such as FN as "unsettling."
He defended the EU against its critics and said, "The EU is one of the most important experiments in governance. In terms of its success in extinguishing nationalism and religion as causes of conflict it is actually extraordinary. "Some younger European citizens seem to struggle the importance of this but it is critical that it survives.
"This is important not just for Europe but for all those who want to build institutions which will be capable of withstanding the forces of populism." One of the key reasons, he said, behind the rise of populist parties like UKIP and FN was the fact that "large swathes" of the population had been "left behind" by globalisation. Dean, an unsuccessful candidate in the 2004 US presidential race, also voiced concern about the "threat" posed by automation to Western societies. He said, "This is a huge problem that is heading our way, one which will have an effect on all our lives, and which no one seems to be talking about.
"It seems we have no idea of how to address the problem and the impact automation is going to have. At present it is affecting blue collar workers but, soon, it will also affect white collar workers just as much."
Dean was the governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009.
By: N. Peter Kramer
