The challenges of local elderly policy are enormous. Many people assume they will be able to rely on a well-functioning trajectory of adapted living and care services when they grow old.
Marc De Vos nuances the dramatic figures for youth unemployment in the Eurozone. The crisis may even be a blessing in disguise, when a longer and better educated workforce enters the labour market. But without firm action the risk of a lost generation is very real.
Having citizens to buy government bonds of their own country might go a long way towards solving the euro government debt problem.
A real recovery policy is needed in order to stimulate the growth that the government ambitions for the end of the year.
Low interest rates delivered a windfall gain of 400 million euros for the budget. The question for budgetwatchers: what would the government use it for?
Marc De Vos sees the new nationality law as a step in the right direction of social and economic participation. He misses the cultural or identity dimension en pleads for a broad strategy for integration. Otherwise, the law will not unite but divide.
Marc De Vos notices how François Hollande has replaced his election slogans with the language of cost control and competitiveness. The new French president will not rewrite the laws of economic gravity.
Etienne de Callataÿ states that rather than to go for monetary unions exclusively containing homogeneous countries, we have no other choice than to take up the challenge of more convergence within Europe.
The government has announced, as part of the budgetary control, a series of recovery measures such as the job bonus for the low and medium loans, the creation of apprenticeship functions and a reduction of charges for the SME’s.
