By Martin Banks - 24th March 2009
There are loads of reasons to go out on the streets and demonstrate against governments over the current crisis
Felipe González
Former Spanish premier Felipe González has said urgent measures are needed to address a "wave of mistrust" facing the EU.
Speaking in Brussels on Tuesday, the Socialist politician also said the public was yet to grasp the "gravity" of the economic crisis.
González said, "There are loads of reasons to go out on the streets and demonstrate against governments over the current crisis.
"But this crisis is both systematic and global and I do not think the public really understand this."
González chairs a committee of experts on the future of Europe. Set up after the stalled Lisbon treaty was signed, the high-level 'reflection group' will meet soon for the fourth time.
The treaty, which replaced the now defunct constitutional treaty, is partly aimed at simplifying the decision-making process in the EU.
Addressing a Lisbon Council lecture, he said that Europe and the EU faced a "wave of mistrust" and that the 'instrument' of the EU was still in need of "fine tuning".
Gonzalez is the longest-serving prime minister in Spain having served four successive mandates between 1982-96.
He added, "Sometimes even the word 'Europe' is the cause of problems not least because it is difficult to define.
"The EU has undergone what I would call a period of sweet decadence. But it has been losing relevance in the world, faces serious structural problems and is losing out in terms of global competitiveness."
Despite its failings, he said he remained a "convinced European," adding, "If we did not have the instrument [the EU] we would have to invent it."
He said that Europe's social model was the world's best but warned, "We cannot continue talking about the European social model without also talking about what kind of economy, technology and R&D that we need."
On the credit crunch, González said, "If we do not learn from the mistakes of the past they will be repeated in four to five years' time."
The reflection group, which is examining Europe's future up to the year 2030, has so far met three times.
"The meetings have been satisfactory but everyone has been shocked by the dimension and gravity of the economic crisis," he said.
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