transform! yearbook 2022 looks at how left politics has been challenged by the Covid pandemic and asks what a programme of left demands for pandemic research, prevention, and treatment might look like.
transform! 2021 looks at capitalism's impact on the world ecosystem and the concomitant economic crisis, with their effects on logistics and borders, the structure of work, healthcare systems, European integration, geopolitical power relations, and gender relations – but at the same time the breaches in neoliberal hegemony.
Walter Benjamin polemicised against the naïve idea of revolutions as the locomotives of world history. In his thesis on the concept of history1 Benjamin suggested that if this locomotive, constructed by previous society, were allowed to circulate, most likely it would be heading inexorably into the...
Haris Golemis: At the time of this interview (12 December 2016), the Greek government is close to completing its second review of the third painful Memorandum of Understanding, which it was forced to agree to on July 2015. I understand that the government’s but also your view is that this evaluation...
Donald Trump’s election as the 45th President of the United States alarmed policy makers as well as the media and intellectuals all over Europe. Not only because the umbrellas have always been opened up here when rain clouds darken the skies over Washington but because the scenario very much...
After the Brexit vote, there is a sense of cluelessness, or at least irritation, in Germany, that is, in the newspapers, in political journals, in the parties represented in the Bundestag, and certainly also in the federal government. Pre-referendum polls appeared to indicate that it was alarmingly...
Sometime before the end of 2017 – and most probably in 2016 – the British people will face a referendum on the country’s membership of the European Union. The referendum was a pledge included in the Conservative Party’s manifesto, prior to the May 2015 general election, most likely to head off...
The European Union’s many crises are being expressed in all manner of centrifugal tendencies, fragmentation, and erosion. By the time of the 2008 financial crisis it became apparent that only the national governments had the capacity to act in some sort of reasonable way – not due to national...
How should the European Monetary Union be reformed?
The president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, ‘in close cooperation’ with the presidents of the European Council, the Eurogroup, the European Central Bank (ECB), and the European Parliament, has published a report entitled...
Since the European election of 2014, there has been a split across Europe’s political landscape. While in the EU’s southern countries – especially in Greece, Spain and Portugal – the growing protest against the predominant line of European policy has been articulated largely in a leftist context, a...
Literally on a daily basis, the nature of the European Union’s relations with its neighbours is called into question by the never-ending refugee drama on the EU’s southern borders, the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the domestic struggles in Turkey and North Africa.
The EU’s self-image...
The European treaties jointly developed and voted by the right and social democracy have created a twenty-eight-key lock, which requires all keys to be turned simultaneously if any change in the fundamental direction of the Union’s policies is to take place. At the very least, since the less...
Unwelcome developments at the EU level and economic imbalances within the EU and the euro area are often at the centre of critical analyses of the European crisis. There are popular and also justified fears that these problems might cause the collapse of the currency union. However, these...
Europe is experiencing radical change. The civil war in Ukraine shows just how quickly events can take a dramatic and negative turn. That issues of domestic and foreign policy are to blame for this outburst of violence is just as true as the fact that this conflict is one between national...
Europe is shifting into greater public view. On the one hand, party political actors are announcing that social Europe is our democratic answer to globalisation. On the other hand, the process of the constitutional treaty has been blocked. In referenda and parliamentary votes, the majority of the...
Globalisation is itself nothing new in human history. However, in the last 20 years, due to the collapse of actually-existing socialism and the rapid pace of development of information technologies under the influence of the 500 biggest transcontinental private corporations who today control 52.8 %...
It would be interesting, to say the least, to know if the political, economic, social and cultural system of what is called the European Union was what the first advocates of the Pan-European concept envisaged.
The question seems all the more actual and appropriate when one considers that a United...
The failure of the project of the European political and technocratic elites to constitutionalise of the European Union (EU) obliges us to reconsider the foundations and the process of the political unification of the European states and the formation of a democratic and social Europe. The...
The Left was always internationalist. We wish to end the threat of war and the subordination of poor and weak states to the rich and powerful ones. We accept neither social and humanitarian inequality, nor the numerous unsolved international problems in the area of the environment, labour, transport...
Let us recall first of all the principal stages envisaged for the process that is supposed to lead to the future European Treaty:
On July 23, 2007, the ministers of foreign relations of the “27” met in Brussels to launch the intergovernmental conference (IGC). The new Portuguese presidency of the...
A jigsaw puzzle is a picture made up of interlocking pieces. If we think of the EU as a gigantic puzzle, then it is clear that its interlocking pieces do not fit.
In recent months dramatic changes in the EU have taken place. This article addresses the role of Germany in the multilevel governance structure of the EU.
Dimitris Sotiropoulos notes quite rightly that the Euro is not just a currency, but a mechanism: “It has set up a particular form of symbiosis among different capitalist economies” (Sotiropoulos 2012, 66). But what is the material nature of this “symbiosis among different capitalist economies”?
As this autumn begins, the governments of member countries of the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union (EMU) are struggling to ratify as quickly as possible the EMU’s Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance (the so-called Budgetary Pact).
1. Facts and documents
As in every crisis, capitalism’s ruling elites, in order, among other things, to manage the current economic-financial crisis, are redesigning the institutions, which is what is happening in the EU with the Euro Plus Pact, the Six Pack and now with the Treaty on Stability,...
“... the task arises is not merely to criticize the policy of the ruling classes [...] from the standpoint of the existing society itself, but also to contrast existing society as its every move with the socialist ideal of society [...]” - Rosa Luxemburg, Social Democracy and Parliamentarism (1904)...
The Euro-zone is undergoing a crucial test. A number of member states are unable to get out of the debt trap on their own. The major reason for the record deficits has to do with the superiority of the German economy, which right from the start has been the major exporter both of goods and of...
“Time is the delimiter of human development. A person who has no free time at his disposal, whose whole lifetime – aside from the mere physical interruptions of sleep, meals and so on – is taken up by his work for the capitalists, is less than a beast of burden. He is a mere machine for the...
The EU’s Open Method of Coordination (OMC) seems to exist in a world of its own, outside of the real social welfare debate. Proven ineffectiveness in its core area – combating poverty – is combined with an apparently naïve faith in the power of consensus and the need to set a good example.
People are not equal, but all people need to be accorded equal value. And it is just this equal value that is permanently in danger, not only for traditional reasons like natural disasters, wars and slavery, but also as a result of a colonial history, geographic differences and, last but not least, today’s free market.
Europe consists of about 50 states, 27 of which are members of the European Union. So, what we see on the far right are ‘50 shades of brown’, so to speak. It is doubtful that one and the same notion can be applied to such a wide range of phenomena. However, even more doubtful appears the notion of...
Basic income is not just one financial measure among many but a social, economic and civic financial amount which has a far-reaching multiplier effect in many areas of life. Basic income is a profound civilizational change on par with the introduction of universal suffrage or universal health care. Read an analysis of its key aspects.
The Party of the European Left (PEL) — alongside the European United Left-Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) in the European Parliament (EP) — is one of the European left’s most prominent transnational organizations. What challenges does it face? What are ist potentials for future developments?
On the...
The GUE /NGL and EL suffered a defeat. Except for some notable exceptions – Portugal, Slovenia, and Belgium – and our having maintained significant electoral strength in Greece and Cyprus we lost across the board. Moreover, we must acknowledge that except for the Czech Republic we have no MEPs in the vast space of Central and Eastern Europe.
Find here Gabi Zimmer's talk at the European seminar organised by transform! europe and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, 12-14 June 2019, reflecting the new political conditions in the aftermath of the European elections.
The EP elections were a victory for a neo-liberal agenda and to a much lesser degree for a green one, although here - as in some other EU member countries - the vote for “green” parties served to reduce the vote f0r the radical left.
On Sunday, 26th of May, Slovenia voted for its MEPs for the fourth time since they became the first former Yugoslav Republic to join the EU on 1st of May 2004. At the same time, this is the second time that a contestant in the elections was a party which is a member of the Party of the European Left.
The ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) won a significant victory in the European elections in Poland, strengthening its position in the run up to this autumn's national parliamentary elections. This was despite the fact that many of the opposition parties stood in a single coalition against PiS. The remaining left and liberal parties were marginal
The ruling party GERB won the European Parliament elections in Bulgaria with 31.07% of the votes. Second is the BSP (Bulgarian Socialist Party) with 24.26%, while the third is the Movement of rights and freedoms (DPS) with 16.55% (which candidate was Delyan Peevsky – the person that provoked huge...
As broadly anticipated in the pre-election piece on Romania, the country’s main right-wing party won the European elections, the National Liberal Party (EPP), which gathers most elements of previous right-wing governments, gained nearly 27% of the votes. On second place came the Social Democratic...
The main result of EP elections in Lithuania could be summed up as a pro-EU anti right-wing populism victory. None of the anti-EU agencies got any seats in the EU parliament. The very high turnout (53.08%) was a result of the second round of very popular Presidential election, but also of...
The clear sanction of the Liberal-Conservative government in the legislative, regional and European elections on May 26 took a radically different form in different parts of the country. While the Flemish (60% of the population) massively voted for the far right, it is the radical and ecological left that triumphs in Brussels and Wallonia.
One day after the elections, it is still difficult to comprehend fully the results of yesterday’s predicament. On thing is definitely clear, the left has been deeply defeated. The first surprise of the European elections has been the higher than expected turnout. Indeed, while every polling stations...
The electoral system
The UK electoral system for the European election was the D’Hondt system of PR which traditionally rewards the party receiving the highest vote disproportionately and this has again become the case with the Brexit Party only receiving 33% of the vote but almost 50% of the...
The biggest losers of the 2019 EP election were probably the Hungarian public opinion polls, who basically signaled only the total success of the ruling parties (FIDESZ-KDNP) correctly, the results of the opposition forces were completely misled.
Finland elects 13 MEPs (14 after Brexit). The whole country is one constituency and there is no barrier, expcept the number of MEPs. In practice, around 6% of votes is enough for one seat, 12% for two seats and 18% for three seats. A voter need to elect a candidate which belongs to party list or...
The social democratic PvdA has come out as the surprise winner of the EP elections in the Netherlands. The left Socialist Party looses its two seats and the Party for the Animals looses one seat.
The lead candidates (spitzenkandidaten) for the European Commission’s presidency from the Party of European Socialists, the Party of European Left, the European Green Party, and ‘European Spring’, gave answers to Progressive Caucus’s 10 points for a political debate, ahead of the European elections,...
The Hungarian member of the Party of the European Left, the Workers‘ Party 2006 is not running for EP elections this time. Instead they call to vote for the Socialist party (S&D) which is projected to gain 11% and 3 seats. Read here the cooperation agreement on the election campaign between the two parties with a focus on energy strategy.
A few weeks before the European Parliament (EP) elections a new alliance of right-wing populists is taking shape. Italy’s Vice-Premier, Minister of the Interior, and head of the Lega, Matteo Salvini, introduced the EP group European Alliance of Peoples and Nations.
DIE LINKE and the French Communist Party are appealing to progressive forces, unionists and social movements to vote for the Left in the upcoming EP elections.
The experiences in Hungary, Poland, Austria and elsewhere make clear the antidemocratic character of these right-wing extremist parties, which, once in government, infiltrate the state apparatus in order to take precautions against their being deprived of power again. Is it possible to speak, in a scientific sense, of a fascist danger in Europe?
At the meeting of the Executive Board of the Party of the European Left Party on 26-27 January 2019 in Brussels, the top candidates for the European elections were voted. In addition, the election platform was confirmed.
Progressive Caucus’s event in the European Parliament: With the participation of the Presidents Udo Bullmann (Socialists), Ska Keller (Greens), Gabi Zimmer (Left), and representatives from the parties SYRIZA (Greece), RAZEM (Poland), Generation.s (France), Ecolo (Belgium)
High quality debates among people from different starting points aiming to find a common ground for a Europe of the people. A seminar that tried not to give definitive answers, but to pose at least the right questions.
transform! europe and the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung staged a Workshop in Berlin under the title: “State of Affairs in Europe” in July 2016. Political scientists and actors were invited to debate the possibilities for common perspectives and action of the Left in Europe.
This seminar is one of the cornerstones of the strong and stable cooperation between transform! europe and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation and takes place every year aiming to tackle crucial strategic question for the European left forces and the radical left strategy towards the European Integration.
The EU Treaty changes we need, and why we need them.– This study is an invitation to engage in dialogue for all those who are interested in an alternative development of the European Union and its integration.
The decision of the Labour Party’s electorate to elect Jeremy Corbyn Labour leader for the second time within 12 months was a temporary victory for the left of the party and gives it a respite. Despite the continuous attacks against Corbyn after the shock outcome of the Brexit referendum, the new old new chairman has been able to strengthen his position in the party.
European Integration is currently undergoing its most difficult phase since the Treaties of Rome entered into force. The European Union (EU) has shown itself incapable of dealing with the structural flaws inherent to the Maastricht Economic and Monetary Union.
A number of Leftist conferences recently convened in Paris, Berlin and Madrid addressed the issue of an alternative plan for Europe. We as transform! were present in all the events as we believe that an open and comeradely debate without any taboos is necessary.
Alexis Tsipras won the battle on a question of principle – the need for a new Europe – even if he lost the war that ensued. What are the implications for the Greek left and for Europe?
After five months of negotiations conducted in an authoritarian and arrogant manner, 18 heads of state and government of the Euro-group under the leadership of Germany’s finance minister, have forced an agreement on Greece’s democratically elected government that contradicts SYRIZA’s electoral programme and negates the results of the July 5 referendum.
Who has such “partners” doesn’t need enemies no more. Greece’s conservative and social-democratic “partners” in the EU and in the eurozone on July 12 have during 17 hours shot with smoking guns on the Greek government and have not missed their target. Read here the whole article in German...
The Greek Dilemma and Us. Nine provisional considerations after both the popular Oxi and Syriza’s Yes to the Memorandum. This is being written after the vote in the Greek parliament and before the final decision of the Eurogroup. At the moment, everything is open, and we are certain of only a couple of things. Almost everything can change, but some things will remain true.
Here the full text of the proposals submitted by the Greek Government and signed by Alexis Tsipras on Monday this week. After an initial cheer by the lenders, the proposals were finally rejected on Wednesday, 24 June.
On 20 February, as news of the Brussels deal came through, Germany claimed victory and it is no surprise that most of the working press bought the claim. They have high authorities to quote and to rely on. Thus from London The Independent reported: “several analysts agreed that the results of the talks amounted to a humiliating defeat for Greece.”
With its EP14 project, transform! europe covers in cooperation with Rosa Luxemburg Foundation and the French journal Regards the European Parliament elections from a left perspective.
Find the election results of all EU countries, election analysis, comments and graphs on the respective country...
On 10 April 2014, the Party of the European Left (EL) and transform! europe jointly organized an International Conference in Brussels. The aim of the meeting was to explore the alternatives to solve the problem of the debt and stop the austerity policies.
Within the left wing of the Left, there is much debate about Europe and the euro. Should we exit from the euro? Should we secede from the European Union? Many claim that any action within the Union is doomed to failure.
Looking into Europe's geopolitical evolution since 1989 and citing Rosa Luxemburg Heinz Bierbaum and Michael Brie explain why Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine must be considered an inter-imperial war. Both call for the left to urgently conduct a Europe-wide debate on a concept of collective security both for Europe and its close neighbourhood.
Using Eurobarometer data, transform! Co-President Cornelia Hildebrandt analyses the Ukraine war's impact on EU population perceptions and anticipates 2024 EU election's issues. The social issue especially dominates, while EU measures taken in 2019-2023 in the wake of Brexit, pandemic and war show that social improvements are indeed possible.
Climate change, the living conditions of women, war, immigration: these are some of the issues addressed and told from different points of view and at different latitudes in this ePublication published by the European Network of Political Foundations (ENoP) in cooperation with transform! italia and co-funded by the European Union.
Tunisia and the EU signed a memorandum of understanding for a "strategic partnership" on renewables, economic development, and — for all — migration in July. The ongoing EU ’s asylum reform and this long-sought deal with Tunisia aiming at externalising borders are the latest steps in its war on migrants. The author calls for new counter-strategies.
The Pact on Migration and Asylum presented by the EU commission in 2020 focuses on deterrence, isolation, a toughening of the European border, and the fast-tracking of decisions at the expense of asylum seekers’ rights. New steps are now being taken by the European Parliament and the Swedish Presidency of the EU Council. Where is Europe heading?
Gabi Zimmer on why a sustainable peace depends on responsibly carrying out a society-wide conversation and promoting broad alliances with common initiatives and action on the part of anti-militarist and anti-fascist peace movements, climate activists, and trade unions.
The International Conference on “The European Union, Turkey, the Middle East and the Kurds” took place in the European Parliament on 8-9 March. Read the shortened version of the opening statement by co-organiser Dersim Dağdeviren as well as the final declaration here.
Axel Ruppert of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation reflects on the EU's geopolitical ambitions, examines what has changed in the EU's geopolitical orientation since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, criticises the increasing militarisation of the EU and provides an impulse for a different understanding of security.
Cornelia Ernst, Member of the European Parliament (DIE LINKE), believes that the sharp criticism levelled by NGOs and left-wing groups at Europe's migration and asylum policy is justified - as for many years this policy has stood for a practice of cooperation with undemocratic third countries.
Ahead of the EU summit on 9-10 February, where migration policy will be high on the agenda, left-wing MEPs are calling for measures to allow people seeking safety in Europe to come to Europe in dignity.
Jan van Aken, a former member of the German Bundestag for DIE LINKE and an expert on peace and security policy at the Rosa- Luxemburg-Foundation, reflects on the reasons why EU sanctions against Russia have failed so miserably.
Marga Ferré, Co-President of transform! europe, in her speech at the 7th Party Congress of the European Left (EL), outlined the importance of interplay between science and political activism in the struggle for social justice and peace and a feminist and ecological Europe.
On the occasion of the Western Balkans Conference in Tirana on December 6 2022, we publish here the "Belgrade Conference Joint Statement on Open Borders: Building Alliances for the Right to Migrate!"
Jari Järvenpää reports from Plenary Session I "A New Social and Environmental Compass for Europe", held in Athens in October 2022 in the framework of the 6th European Forum of Left, Green and Progressive Forces.
Gala Kabbaj reports from the Plenary 2, held at Theld at the 6th European Forum 2022 in Athens. The aim of this session was to outline a new collective safety architecture based on nuclear disarmament, military de-escalation, an end to over-armament, respect for the territorial integrity of nations and the defence of human rights.
Jean-Claude Simon reflects on the workshop “Possibilities of a socio-ecological transformation of the energy sector in times of war”, chaired by transform! europe, in the framework of the 6th edition of the European Forum of Left, Green and Progressive Forces, which took place in October 2022 in Athens.
Fabian Figueiredo sketches a sharp overview of how the current circumstances in Europe and the Global North, which are dominated by war, energy crises, and nationalism, are affecting the development of the extreme right.
Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has cast a light on the web of ties between influential individuals (and politicians) in Russia, Europe and the US. This not only involves oligarchs and manipulative energy tactics, but Russia’s special relationship with the far-right around the globe.
Das 1,5-Grad-Ziel zu erreichen, wird immer schwieriger. Warum es dazu eine transformative Industriepolitik braucht und warum es irrsinnig ist, Uran und Gas als umweltgerechte Energiequellen einzustufen, erklärt Roland Kulke von transform! europe im Gespräch mit Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Betrieb & Gewerkschaft.
The European Parliament votes down the controvese Emissions Trading System (ETS). It was rejected by a clear majority, with the Green and Socialist MEPs rejecting the proposal because the amendments of the conservative groups weakened it too much in their opinion, while the right-wing groups considered it too ambitious.
In just a few short weeks, the impact of the US Supreme Court ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade has been profound. Its reverberations were also felt in Europe. Last week, the European Parliament voted in favour of a resolution to defend abortion rights.
Marga Ferré, Co-President of transform! europe, comments on the NATO-led western militarisation and analyses its ideological foundation. In this context, she points out the construction of the "other" as the enemy and racial supremacy, which both must be fought.
Walter Baier calls for a new balanced European security including international treaties on arms control and reduction, reestablishing trust and the reconstructing economic and cultural ties.
The following statement has been issued by the DIALOP Transversal Dialogue Project, a joint project between universities, foundations, and associations, developed by faculty members with different ideological and philosophical, Marxist or Christian backgrounds.
It seems to me that after almost four months of war in Ukraine we have to take a step back and see which of the actors involved are benefitting from the conflict. However, it becomes clear very quickly that nobody is getting anything out of this and that we are experiencing the suicide of the reason.
Some European provisions are opposed to the implementation of "an ecological and social programme of rupture", explains the La France Insoumise MEP and co-chair of The Left in the European Parliament in an article in "Le Monde", specifying that "disobeying" these rules does not mean contributing to the desintegration of the EU.
Can we rejoice at the end of one war while another is raging? Writing about 8 May is difficult this year. Obviously its most important message must be: Stop the killing in Ukraine! Return to the negotiating table!
A referendum will be held on 1 June to decide whether Denmark participates in the military dimension of the EU, the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). It was called by five parliamentary parties, including the governing Social Democratic Party.
NATO is an imperialist organisation, dominated by the USA and responsible for innumerable wars of aggression. The dismantling of this political-military monster generated by the Cold War is a fundamental requirement of democracy. Its weakening in recent years has led Emmanuel Macron, France’s...
To create a cooperation of peace-loving European organisations and individuals, capable of considering war, any war, as unjustifiable, this was the aim of those who gathered on Sunday 3 April in Rome, representing political powers from various countries.
On the occasion of today's International Roma Day, the ERGO Network, an NGO consisting of more than 30 Roma and pro-Roma organisation from all over Europe, provides a report on Antigypsyist online hate speech in 10 European countries.
Germany’s special historical responsibility is repeatedly reaffirmed, but at the same time interpreted in a new way – specifically now in the context of the war in Ukraine. Among those who call for German leadership, many like former German President Gauck are reinterpreting history at the European level in terms of the totalitarianism thesis.
Roland Kulke provides an overview of a research study commissioned by transform! europe which analyses the measures to offset the financial impact of the Covid19 crisis in 11 EU Member States for the years 2020 and 2021.
transform! europe, together with more than 270 civil society organisations, academics, and other think tanks from all 27 EU Member States, is issuing the Manifesto for a Green, Just, and Democratic European Economy, calling for fundamental change of the EU’s Economic Governance Framework.
transform! europe is issuing a Peace Manifesto advocating for an end of the Russian attack on Ukraine, peace and a deeper understanding of the current conflict.
This year’s Energy Poverty Action Week is taking place from 21 to 25 February to build momentum across Europe to demand clean, affordable energy for all.
Tamás Krausz, founding editor of the periodical Eszmélet (Consciousness), a Hungarian journal for social critique and culture, talks to Attila Antal, editor-in-chief of Eszmélet.
The French President’s vision for Europe, often hailed as ambitious and progressive, is seemingly at odds with his conventional neoliberal domestic policies. However, behind this discrepancy lies a coherent strategy which is key to his reelection.
The Left is calling on EU leaders to work to avoid further escalation and confrontation with Russia and pursue a policy of immediate reconciliation in order to avert war and guarantee security in Europe.
‘To those who fight!’ (”¡Arriba las que luchan!”), MEP Sira Rego (Izquierda Unida, Spain) said on 18 January in the plenary of the European Parliament (EP). Following the death of David Sassoli, the EP turned to the election of a new president. The Left’s candidate was Rego. Read her plenary speech in full.
Get an overview on the discussions at the 2021 European Forum, a unique space where the left, greens and progressives can come together and discuss on ways to built another future for Europe.
This study, commissioned by the Left in the European Parliament, aims to draw lessons from the application of the European Social Fund (ESF+) during the period of 2014-2020 in regards to its goal of combating poverty.
The Left will put forward Sira Rego MEP (Izquierda Unida, Spain) as its candidate for President of the European Parliament in the midterm elections in January 2022.
The crisis caused by the spread of COVID-19 across the planet, in fact, has revealed all the contradictions, limitations and deficiencies of a neoliberal, predatory and unsupportive model of society, which is unable to cope with such a profound challenge like the consequences of a Pandemic, which has ravaged the world for almost two years.
“Hundred shades of the EU – Mapping the Political Economy of the EU Peripheries”, is a title of the research study, conducted by transform! europe with the support of the Rosa-Luxemburg Foundation that aims at characterizing at the socio-economic, political, and cultural levels the current existing peripheries within the European Union.
Czechia should be firmly entrenched in the EU, but the EU must change. Into a united, just and prosperous Europe. Czechia can also find a new, unique role in it. If we can use historical experience and learn to resolve disputes by an agreement, we can become mediators and peacekeepers in a number of conflicts.
A humanitarian emergency is once again developing on the European Union’s borders: Refugees find themselves trapped between Poland and Belarus as Polish government takes increasingly aggressive action and even declared the state of emergency in two of its regions.
The Conference on the Future of Europe, which formally began its work in May 2021, has to fulfil high and ambitious expectations as set by the EU’s highest-level officials: an unconditionally open practice of listening to the opinions of European citizens in all their diversity.
In this edition, the quarterly magazine of the Party of the European Left focuses on the future development of the EU and political strategies for the left in Europe.
The President of the European Commission claims to have found the "soul of Europe" – and it's a convenient screen for her purely profit- and power-driven approach to politics.
On Monday, 13 September, Norwegians from the North Cape to south most Lindesnes vote on who will fill the seats of the national parliament in Oslo (Stortinget). Polls suggest that the election will produce a change in government, forcing current Prime Minister Erna Solberg out of office.
On 14 July 2021 the European Commission presented its climate protection project ‘Fit for 55’ for implementing Europe’s climate legislation. As a whole, the merits of Fit for 55 are mixed. Although it contains steps in the right direction it also has points in urgent need of improvement in the sense of strong climate protection and social justice.
On 20 July 2001, 23-year-old protester Carlo Giuliani was shot dead by a policeman in the course of the demonstrations against the G8 Summit in Genoa. This summit went down in history for the enormous scale of police brutality. Greek MP Yiannis Bournous, who took part in the protests, reflects on their impact on left parties all across Europe.
The Left in the European Parliament (formerly: GUE/NGL) presents a study to analyse the agreements between the European Commission and pharmaceutical companies to develop Covid-19 vaccines.
On 7/8 May, while the Heads of State and Government of all EU Member States attended the Social Summit, Left Bloc (Portugal) held a counter-summit that brought together politicians, trade unionists, activists and representatives of civil society organisations to discuss the social agenda that is needed to respond to the economic crisis.
An opportunity for a profound and broad debate on the future development of the EU including the Treaties? Read here the position of the Party of the European Left on the "Conference of the Future of Europe", a joint initiative of the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission to create a space for debate for European citizens.
To form a public opinion that is purely European, without influences from the mainstream media – this is the purpose of Media Alliance, a transform! Italy project that aims at creating a network between left-wing newspapers within the European Union. During the first public meeting of the project,...
This is how the authors summarise the outcomes of the Global Health Summit on 21 May, organised by the Italian G20 Presidency and the European Commission. The summit ended with the signing of the "Rome Declaration" as a "voluntary orientation for current and future action for global health".
The Left in the European Parliament presents a study to analyse the ways Amazon, as one of the major multinational enterprises (MNEs), has organized its domestic and international business to minimize taxation worldwide. The researchers identify Luxembourg as the coordinating centre of a global tax dodging operation.
After months of right-wing stalling and delaying tactics, the European Parliament (EP) approved a resolution to tackle the AIDS epidemic which includes a demand formulated by The Left in the EP for waiving intellectual property rights on Covid-19 vaccines.
We are deeply disappointed with the outcome of the Social Summit in Porto (Portugal). After four long years since the Gothenburg meeting and more than a year marked by the effects of the pandemic, we stay at the side of those European citizens and workers who would have liked to see a more...
Last week Milan Neubert’s memory was honoured by a small gathering. The Czech communist, who died on 20 April, was a natural scientist, co-founder of the political education association Společnost pro evropský dialog (SPED) as well as the long-time chair of the Party of Democratic Socialism (Strana demokratického socjalismus, SDS).
The Citizens' Memorandum, which will analyse the key obstacles to needed changes and present the most relevant solutions that need to be implemented, by the "Move Up 2021 Initiative".
Defining neoliberal efforts merely as market radical is misleading. The dynamic and diverse sphere of neoliberal actors, both worldwide and on a European level, makes it necessary to abjure simplistic reductions when looking at neoliberal networks. This applies in particular against the background of current post-Covid struggles.
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's misogynist treatment of Ursula von der Leyen should not divert from wider concerns as to why the EU keeps turning a blind eye to a Turkish leader notorious for his contempt for women's and human rights, Left (formerly GUE/NGL) Co-Presidents say in recent a statement.
The Party of the European Left presents the first issue of its quarterly magazine – with transform! europe's Walter Baier as part of the editorial board.
Whom does the energy of tomorrow belong to? To give an answer to this crucial question was the focus of the webinar organised by The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL, in collaboration with transform! europe.
The latest accusations against Frontex for human rights abuses are the culmination of a process of dehumanisation, also with pushbacks, Lipa and Moria as its manifestations – as well as the little known EU Migration Pact presented by the Commission in September.
Italy will host the G20 and official meetings will be held in various cities to establish agreements with which the powerful countries of the world will surely continue to fail to address the social and environmental injustice in which we are immersed. The health crisis, climate change,...
Europe's military sectors have an annual carbon footprint equivalent to emissions from at least 14 million cars, a study published by the Left group in the European Parliament has found.
In order to effectively address the social and ecological crisis we are facing, the European Pillar of Social Rights has to be incorporated into the EU Treaties, argues Manuela Kropp.
A newly released study on the current situation of on-demand workers for platforms such as Uber or Deliveroo in Europe, commissioned by the Left group in the European Parliament. The study includes an analysis of the various strategies used to combat the social model imposed on platform workers, both by platform workers and trade unions.
How we all lost due to the policy of austerity and why profit and health care will never go hand in hand - Polish journalist Małgorzata Kulbaczewska-Figat talks to MEP Marc Botenga, member of the Workers' Party of Belgium (PVDA/PTB) and The Left in the European Parliament.
Roberto Musacchio on recent investigations showing that the growth of tax evasion in the European Union – evasion leading to tax gaps which exceed the healthcare spending of several EU Member States, ‘often by considerable amounts‘.
Named in honour of the murdered Maltese investigative journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia, three whistleblowers have been honoured by the GUE/NGL for their work in exposing the truth, and for their courage in risking their careers and personal freedom.
The Commission’s proposal for the first European Climate Law aims to write into law the goal to make Europe’s economy and society climate-neutral by 2050. An analysis by the GUE/NGL.
La France Insoumise had its summer university in Valence from 19th to 22 August. This meeting was obviously overshadowed by the Corona Crisis and its brutal impact on the popular classes in France. But also the attempts of the government to push through anti-social pension and unemployment “reforms”...
transform! europe and the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung are launching a long-term study into the socio-economic and political comprehensive understanding of the complex European Union peripheries, from different perspectives and with the use of comparative analysis.
transform! europe and the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung are launching a long-term study into the socio-economic and political comprehensive understanding of the complex European Union peripheries, from different perspectives and with the use of comparative analysis.
A comment on Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen's (VDL) 'State of the Union' speech (16.9.) by the GUE/NGL (European United Left / Nordic Green Left) group in the European Parliament.
In the face of the terrible and life-threatening situation of the 12,500 refugees and asylum seekers on Lesbos, transform! europe, together with various NGOs and intellectuals throughout Europe and worldwide, supports this call for an immediate evacuation of Moria.
Fire has destroyed Greece's largest migrant camp, the overcrowded Moria facility on the island of Lesbos. The Party of the European Left (EL) demands a removal of the Dublin Regulations and the establishment of legal and safe humanitarian corridors.
transform! europe has established a working group on the economic crisis which followed the outbreak of the coronavirus. We are now looking for articles on the anti-crisis programmes for selected EU Member States.
Between 17-21 July the heads of EU Member States (MS) met together in Brussels and spent as much time haggling over the ‘development plan’, which is designed to stabilise economies weakened by the coronavirus, as over the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). What should we make of their decisions?
Covid-19 has led to a dramatic economic crisis. The EU has modified the strict State aid rules to such a degree that States can now help their national economies virtually at their own discretion. What at first sounds sensible comes with a catch, however, since it results in the strong becoming even stronger and leaving poorer economies behind.
Decrying EU leaders’ hatchet job on the long-term budget and recovery plan, the GUE/NGL group will join the vast majority in the European Parliament in passing a resolution that strongly criticises the conclusions of last weekend’s summit.
The lack of ambition shown in the context of the biggest...
Dedicated to individuals or groups who have been intimidated and/or persecuted for uncovering the truth and exposing it to the public, this year’s award of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left group in the European Parliament is once again named in honour of the late Maltese journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Call for a new progressive and democratic front in Europe. A statement of intellectuals and academics initiated by, amongst others, Costas Douzinas, President of the Nicos Poulantzas Institute, a transform! europe member organization.
Every sector of the economy has felt the impact of the coronavirus crisis, and car manufacturing is no exception. There are 12 million EU workers employed in the automotive industry, either directly in production or in parts manufacturing, and the sector accounts for 7% of the union’s GDP.[1] If we...
The left group in the European Parliament is joining forces with left-wing parties and grassroots organisations from across Europe to launch a major campaign of mobilisation in support of free and universal access to a Covid-19 vaccine.
In 2015, when the Paris Agreement was still under negotiations, British journalist Paul Mason expressed his doubts whether the agreement would be signed and wrote that such climate conferences „resemble the peace treaties that paved the way to the Second World War."[1] Although Mason was wrong about...
In the face of current challenges, the EU is at a crossroad. Whether, as a consortium of strong nation-states, it develops into a new type of free-trade zone or intervenes in the future as an independent actor in global conflicts will strongly depend on the conservative forces that constitute the single most politically influential force in the EU.
Manon Aubry, together with Martin Schirdewan Co-President of the GUE/NGL group, was the guest in the sixth edition of transform! europe's webinar series Meeting the Left. She is former spokesperson for Oxfam, and since 2019 a Member of the European Parliament for France Insoumise.
On 5 May, the German Constitutional Court’s ruling questioned the legality of the European Central Bank (ECB)’s purchases of sovereign bonds, which play a key role in preventing an implosion of the Eurozone. Where is this judgement coming from and what are its political, legal and macroeconomic potential consequences?
Heinz Bierbaum, President of the Party of the European Left (EL), in the interview with transform! europe, discussing the crisis of our social and economic system and the new position paper of the EL.
The second guest in transform!’s series "Meeting the Left" was Katja Kipping, Co-Chairperson of the party Die LINKE. The conversation largely focussed on European politics.
Catarina Martins, National Coordinator of the Portuguese party Bloco de Esquerda (Left Bloc) proposes the 'creation of a Recovery Fund of 1.5 billion euros, directly funded by the ECB and makes the case for the building alliances between peripheral economies, such as the Portuguese one, for example around the demand for public debt restructuring.'
The Ruling of the Second Senate
(7 yes votes, 1 no)
The securities purchase programme of the European Central Bank to support the European Monetary System with an emphasis on the purchase of government bonds (Stand 2,1 Bio. Euro), known as the Public Sector Purchase Programme (PSPP), is...
In times of the coronavirus – just as in the 2008 financial crisis – the national state is again a central actor in Europe. Financial policy remains tied to the economic pecking order, with Germany at the very top. ‘Eurobonds’ are the key area of contention.
To weather the COVID-19 crisis, Europe's energy-poor urgently need a green bailout – providing decent, zero-carbon homes for all, writes Clémence Hutin.
Covid-19: The Netherlands, Austria and of course Germany have flatly rejected the proposal put forward by countries to their south and west. This was a fatal mistake in two ways.
Appeal from the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), with the support of economists and personalities, on extraordinary macroeconomic measures to tackle the COVID-19 emergency.
A campaign is underway by the left group in the European Parliament to honour the late, great resistance fighter and Greek MEP, Manolis Glezos.
The veteran activist and former GUE/NGL member died earlier this week at the age of 97, and the group feels that an honour that befits a political figure...
On 19 September of last year the European Parliament - with the votes of the conservatives, liberals, social democrats, and greens - passed a resolution in which the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany were made equally responsible for the Second World War. Europe was, so the statement went, the victim of...
Despite current critical health risks, the US military will continue with its plans for a large-scale combat exercise in Europe involving the deployment of tens of thousands of personnel – Defender 2020. Read the statement of the GUE/NGL group.
The healthcare system of the EU country most afflicted by the coronavirus, Italy, has severely suffered from neoliberal cuts and privatisations in recent years. And the health emergency has greatly accelerated the imminent arrival of the next economic emergency. With it we are facing a watershed moment.
What kind of economic and industrial policy do we need at a European level to achieve climate neutrality until 2050? How does a progressive Green New Deal must look like?
Luc Triangle, General Secretary of industriAll (the Trade Union Federation of Trade Unions in the manufacturing, mining and energy sectors) reminds us: "decarbonisation is not happening in a social vacuum. Years of austerities have increased precariousness and inequalities while weakening public services and threatening workers' rights".
In Italy, a discussion developed, first in the media and then in the parliamentary halls, about the proposed reform of the European Stability Mechanism treaty, which should be approved by Eurozone leaders at the Euro summit on December 13th. The leader of the Northern League sovereign party, Matteo...
At its fifth congress held in Berlin in 2016, the Party of the European Left (EL) decided to set up an annual forum of progressive forces with the aim of being able to intervene more effectively in European public debate.
On 30 October the Madrid City Council approved the celebration on 23 August of the Day of European Remembrance of the Victims of Stalinism and Nazism to pay homage to the victims of the communist and National Socialist regimes and other totalitarian and authoritarian regimes’, following an initiative promoted by the ultra-right group Vox.
This is a first in the balance of power between the Commission – the EU executive – and the European Parliament. Even before the scrutiny of the candidates for the future College of Commissioners, headed by Ursula von der Leyen, began on 30 September, two candidates were blocked by a majority of...
The board of transform! europe launches the following open letter regarding the resolution 'Europe must remember its past to build its future', adopted by the majority of the European Parliament – rejected by the GUE/NGL group.
As Turkish troops prepare to invade the Kurdish autonomous areas in northeast Syria, Left MEP Özlem Demirel (DIE LINKE, Germany) appealed for urgent efforts to put a stop to the threat.
“The European Union and the international community must condemn in the strongest terms this aggressive and...
On left silence and the foreign-policy motivation behind the revision of history contained in the European Parliament's resolution. Read Luciana Castellina's comment.
Last Thursday the European Parliament adopted by majority the resolution on the Importance of European remembrance for the future of Europe. Read the statement of the International Federation of Resistance Fighters Association of Anti-fascists on this "ideological relapse into the worst times of the cold war".
Before today’s vote on Christine Lagarde’s nomination as head of the European Central Bank, we offer you eight good reasons why she is unsuitable for the post.
Manon Aubry (La France Insoumise, France) and Martin Schirdewan (DIE LINKE, Germany) are the new co-presidents of the GUE/NGL group in the European Parliament.
After the meeting with German Minister of Defence and nominee to the role of President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, GUE/NGL decided not to support her candidacy.
The President of the European Left, Gregor Gysi, declared at the Executive-Board meeting in Berlin:
The election results of the European elections are both a warning and an invitation to us to make the European Left more attractive and to improve the value of our policies through better...
GUE/NGL presents the 10 priorities that the new presidents of the European Commission and the European Parliament should commit to during their mandates.
“With their nominations for the four senior EU roles, the Council of the heads of government of the EU member states, with Angela Merkel leading the way, did the EU a disservice and casually dropped the principle of appointing only the top candidate of a parliamentary group,”, says Martin Schirdewan, interim group chairman of DIE LINKE in the EP.
Housing is a human right and not a commodity. A European Citizens’ Initiative demands better EU legislation for affordable, public and social housing in Europe.
As the European election approaches, it is noteworthy to acknowledge the almost non-existence of the issue of the current institutional design of the EU institutions in the public debate.
Faced with the choice in Britain between a free-market, xenophobic Brexit and a neoliberal, exclusionary EU, it is useful to learn from the experience of a government that has succeeded in challenging neoliberal austerity from within the EU. In Portugal, just such a government is coming to the end...
Last week, a group of refugees arrived in Brussels to hold a demonstration outside the European External Action Service, European Council and the European Commission, after they cycled the 475-kilometre route from Frankfurt, aiming to raise awareness of the situation of asylum seekers currently trapped in Libya.
A vote that gives the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (FRONTEX) unprecedented powers overwhelmingly recently passed in the European Parliament – giving this opaque EU body unrivalled powers and unchecked accountability.
On 23 June 2016, the electorate of the United Kingdom and Gibraltar voted to decide if the country should remain a member of, or leave, the European Union. The referendum was a Conservative Party manifesto commitment in the general election of May 2015. The Prime Minister and leader of the...
Brexit is an enormous political crisis, and the UK is in parliamentary deadlock. At the moment, there is no majority either for leaving or staying. Repeated votes are taken on a range of options on a regular basis but only opposition to a No Deal Brexit has commanded a majority. A brief overview on the current developments follows.
“I am satisfied with the Council’s compromise because a chaotic Brexit next week is now off the table. EU citizens in the UK and British in the EU can breathe a small sigh of relief.
However, the problem remains: should the House of Commons reject the proposed Withdrawal Agreement again, then there...
In December, the conservative government ordered 3,500 troops to go on standby in case Britain crashes out of the European Union without a deal. Plans originally published by Theresa May as a scare tactic, to force her MPs to vote the deal through parliament, are now being activated for real.
Transform! Europe and all its member and observer organizations have committed themselves to create spaces for radical progressive dialogue and debates and assist the affiliated parties throughout Europe in their race towards the EP elections.
Numerous political leaders from all over the world are gathered these days in Marrakech, under the auspices of the UN, to sign a new migration agreement: the Global Compact for Migration. Migration has become one of the political priorities at a global scale and the richest areas of the world are all adopting similar xenophobic measures.
The relationship of the EU to the rest of the world is primarily based on trade. The role a new Europe should play in a better world therefore primarily needs to be based on a new trade policy. What are relevant points if we discuss the trade policy of Europe[1]?
This conference, held in Lisbon last October, aimed at debating and tracing possible areas of cooperation between social and political actors amongst the Southern European Left.
Following the debate during the General Assembly in September, the board of transform! europe agreed in its Conclave on 16/17 October on the following bullet points, outlining our common understanding about transform!’s strategy for the coming months.
A critique of radical -and by now mainstream- anti-immigrant populism in Europe based solemnly on ideals of liberal-humanitarianism, without a systemic critique of capital is misleading in many respects. Such Analysts and commentators fail to understand properly or they just ignore, why...
On the 12th September Juncker, the President of the European Commission (COM) and member of the Christian democratic party family, held his important “State of the Union” speech. Even if the speech might not be too fascinating itself, it is highly relevant as it provides the COM with strategic direction on what to concentrate its work on.
Despite moderate growth rates, the EU isn’t well. While the social disparities within and between the individual states continue to grow, it has opted for an increase of its military expenditures and tries to make up its obvious lack of internal cohesion with an ever more aggressive policy against migrants and refugees.
An article by Viera Hudečková based on an intervention made at The International Conference “Another EU is necessary and possible” organised by the Party of the European Left on the 12th of May 2018, Sofia, Bulgaria.
The perception of the EU’s ‘Eastern wing’ by the so-called ‘old Europe’ seems to be going through a change. It has quickly become a target of Western criticism in the crisis’s aftermath.
The hundredth anniversary of Poland gaining independence raises many emotions. Over the past two years the right-wing discourse, including on historical and contemporary issues, as well as the future of Poland in a Europe in crisis, has dominated in Poland.
As illustrated by the last economic crisis and by the way its effects have been handled in Greece, the European Union acts as a crutch to protect the market’s flawed logics against democracy. As a new banking crisis of unprecedented magnitude now looms, something must be done urgently.
Two months ago, on 25 July, the Greek government borrowed 3 billion Euros in the bond market at the very high rate of 4.625%. There was a big debate in the media, the Parliament and generally the Greek public space on whether this “exploratory” exit to the markets was a success of the Tsipras government.
A jauntier Juncker than usual held the stage in the Strasbourg auditorium with a highly optimistic speech on the state of the Union. He wanted to go way beyond the appraisals contained in the latest ECB bulletin.
The political crisis, which, 60 years after the signing of the Treaty of Rome, haunts Europe, is heavy and resists any easy interpretation.- Speech at the event ‘A Europe for the People and by the People’ at the Rome University during the mobilisations on occasion of the Rome Treaty celebrations.
Nobody, of course, can deny the significance for Europe of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. However, my view is that this historic event with its unknown consequences for the future of European integration is only a symptom of the general turmoil prevailing in Europe since the outbreak of the systemic crisis in 2008.
Talk at the Summer University of PCF. – The dilemma of Europe is real. On the one hand, it is clear that Europe cannot continue in the same track, something that Britain’s referendum has underscored; of course, the No targeted not only the EU but also Britain’s political class, thus demonstrating that the failure of the neoliberal model threatens not only the European Union but also its Member States.
On 23rd June 2016, Britain voted to leave the European Union – the so-called Brexit vote. On a turn out of 72.2%, 51.9% voted to Leave and 48.1% to Remain, thereby defeating the position of both Cameron’s Conservative government and the Labour Party under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn. This was a hard fought campaign, with its fair share of lies and dirty tricks.
As the British referendum campaign on EU membership enters its final days, the tension and anger is palpable. Traditional fault lines in politics are breaking down as the divisions over Remain or Leave cross and re-cross through parties and movements where typically in a general election period sympathies would be predictable and tolerated.
The United Kingdom's EU referendum, which takes place on 23 June, provides a challenge to the Left. It should be answered by a “remain” vote, together with the rallying cry for #AnotherEurope, a better Europe.
Call for support for the EuroMemorandum 2016, which critically analyses recent economic developments in Europe and emphasises the strong need for an alternative economic policy that is based on the principles of democratic participation, social justice and environmental sustainability.
It is true that the European Union, or rather its predecessors, the European Coal and Steel Community, the EEC and the EC, have never been the projects for peace and human rights as which they were introduced to us. Those have to be disappointed now who allowed themselves to be deceived.
The case of Greece, the austerity policies imposed by the Eurogroup and the fact that hardliners in the governments of Germany and other countries have been blackmailing the Greek government to implement neoliberal programmes have led to discussions about the stance of DIE LINKE (Germany’s main left-wing party) on the currency union and the European Union, as well as the idea of withdrawing from the eurozone.
Alexis Tsipras won the battle on a question of principle – the need for a new Europe – even if he lost the war that ensued. What are the implications for the Greek left and for Europe?
After five months of negotiations conducted in an authoritarian and arrogant manner, 18 heads of state and government of the Euro-group under the leadership of Germany’s finance minister, have forced an agreement on Greece’s democratically elected government that contradicts SYRIZA’s electoral programme and negates the results of the July 5 referendum.
The Greek Dilemma and Us. Nine provisional considerations after both the popular Oxi and Syriza’s Yes to the Memorandum. This is being written after the vote in the Greek parliament and before the final decision of the Eurogroup. At the moment, everything is open, and we are certain of only a couple of things. Almost everything can change, but some things will remain true.
Here the full text of the proposals submitted by the Greek Government and signed by Alexis Tsipras on Monday this week. After an initial cheer by the lenders, the proposals were finally rejected on Wednesday, 24 June.
On the eve of a week of final negotiations between Greece and its creditors, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, defends the actions of his government in an article published yesterday in “LeMonde.fr”.
On 20 February, as news of the Brussels deal came through, Germany claimed victory and it is no surprise that most of the working press bought the claim. They have high authorities to quote and to rely on. Thus from London The Independent reported: “several analysts agreed that the results of the talks amounted to a humiliating defeat for Greece.”
On 10 April the Party of the European Left (EL) and transform! europe jointly organized an International Conference in Brussels. The aim of the meeting was to explore the alternatives to solve the problem of the debt and stop the austerity policies.
Every campaign constitutes a learning process, a process of individual and collective appropriation and of a gain in consciousness. For us it involves promoting the appropriation by citizens of European-level issues so that they can take a position corresponding to their interests. In order to be effective in 2014 we have to fully deploy new arguments.
Speech held by the philosopher and psychoanalyst Nicole-Edith Thevenin at the public meeting on 9 November 2013 in Capannori, Italy, during the FAE’s European meeting.
2014 will be a crucial year in the development of the European Union. The elections for the European Parliament taking place in May will offer the possibility for the European populations to give their verdict on the policies by which the European Union has responded to the crisis.
Who could ignore the fact that today war between France and Germany is something unthinkable? The members of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee impute this as an asset item to the EU and add in this context one of the main motivations of Europe’s populations in favour of the European construction: The preservation of peace among the member states and the commitment for global peace.
After the European Central Bank (ECB) had decided a new programme to buy bonds of states hit by the crisis and subject to a programme of austerity, the stock markets burst into euphoric fireworks. Does that signify that with the new stage of fiscal politics the Gordian knot of the persistent crisis...
On 15 September about a million people, all over Portugal (and even in front of Portuguese embassies in major European cities), walked out into the streets to protest against the Troika, austerity policies and the government implementing them.
This eDossier summarises studies from all parts of Europe that aim to analyse how the discussions on the return of austerity policies are being conducted and whether a care society, a climate policy is in the discourse in the respective countries. And last but not least, which left alternatives to the hegemonic state projects have been developed.
The study provides a broad mapping of Austrian-based multilateral cooperation, actors, and organisations that are heavily involved in EU border externalisation policies far beyond Austrian borders – and therefore in the violent and sometimes lethal approach to people on the move.
The European Union is witnessing a radical epistemic and societal change. The way we communicate, produce, socialise, and even govern, are being shaped by privately owned digital infrastructures.
This paper provides an analysis of the objectives of the Conference on the Future of Europe, conducted by Pedro Chaves Giraldo, lecturer, political scientist and coordinator of the Spanish edition of Le Monde diplomatique.
The present survey on the Party of the European Left (EL) is based on the answers given to the questionnaire by the delegates to the 6th Congress of the Party of the European Left (EL), held in Málaga between 13 and 15 December 2019.
This volume reviews the full breadth of discussions around the left project from 2010 to 2020, tracking developments within the left across Europe – edited by Amieke Bouma and transform! europe's Cornelia Hildebrandt and Danai Koltsida.
A turn towards socio-ecological transformation or a continuation of the neoliberal overexploitation of people and nature? Study on the response of selected EU Member States to the outbreak of the corona crisis, commissioned by transform! europe.
Andrea Allamprese, Professor of Labour Law at the University of Modena, on reforms necessary to challenge – or even reverse – the trend towards labour precarisation in various European countries, edited by Tatiana Moutinho (transform! europe), with an introductory note by Danai Koltsida, Vice President of transform! europe.
Given its urgency, this year’s EuroMemorandum puts special emphasis on the climate crisis and other planetary boundaries. In tandem with deepening social inequalities, renascent authoritarian nationalisms and the crisis of global governance, they urgently need comprehensive and effective policy responses...
With this publication, transform! europe presents a discussion paper by Prof. Hartmut Elsenhans on the EU's economic and monetary policy. Elsenhans adopts a trade union-oriented view of the economy, which combines Keynesian economic analysis with a Marxist class analysis.
This publication is the documentation of the seminar organised by transform! and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation in June 2019, right after the European Elections.
The EP elections brought a strengthening of extreme-right parties. This paper takes a closer look at the party manifestos for the elections to the European Parliament of five of those extreme-right parties by comparing their positions towards the EU, EU integration and „Europe“ in general.
At the 2018 Summer University of transform! europe and the European Left Party in Vienna, the discussion regarding the best monetary system for the EU represents one of the most hotly discussed debates in left circles - hardly surprising, given the relevance of this issue.
Since trade and investment policies are of immense importance for our lives and political work transform! europe offers you this brochure on trade policy.
Since the Brexit decision, the only political project that the neoliberal elites in the EU and its member states are pursuing is the multidimensional militarisation of the EU. In this situation, transform! europe has gathered a collective of authors to stimulate discussion among European left parties and movements about this daring development.
Despite the return to modest economic growth in the EU and the Euro group the scars of the economic crisis persist. The European Union still operates in a crisis mode. Inside the Left a debate on how to cope with the crisis of European integration has begun.
As the German playwright Bertolt Brecht once noted, ‘Thought is something that follows from difficulties and precedes action’. The European Union is in difficulties. So too is the Left.
There has been a lot of talk of a new Cold War between the West and Russia, even though the metaphor itself is not appropriate in today’s globalised context. It is not a very fitting analytical description. Firstly, there is no clear ideological and systemic struggle between Russia and the West.
On 17 and 18 July 2023, a Summit of The European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) will be held in Brussels. Simultaneously, various political and social actors, including transform! europe, are organising a Peoples’ Summit, a mass event open to the most diverse range of views and ideas.
International experts will analyse Europe's role in building peace in Ukraine on Tuesday 21 February in the Mirador Theatre in Madrid, at the event "What can Europe do to build peace in Ukraine?" organised by the newspaper Público and the Fundación Espacio Público. Co-President of transform! europe, Marga Ferré will also participate in the debate.
Mieten und Wohnungspreise werden sogar für Durchschnittsverdienende langsam unbezahlbar. Diese Entwicklung entstand unter anderem durch die Eingliederung des Immobilienmarkts als Teil der europaweiten spekulativen Finanzmärkte. Gefährdet diese Finanzialisierung die gesamte Wirtschaft? Wie kommt man aus dieser Falle heraus?
This international hybrid event brings together organisations and activists working for peace and the environment in Finland and internationally and aims to create discussions about the common goals of the peace and environmental movements and to build a path towards a new joint action of people's movements on behalf of humanity and the planet.
ESU22 will be about the future of Europe. We will draw lessons from the deficits that the pandemic has so brutally shown us in many aspects of life. After the last European Summer University of Social Movements — in Paris and Toulouse — we will meet this year in Germany! transform! europe is participating as a cooperation partner.
The European Forum is a unique space where the left, greens and progressives can come together and share their struggles. We want to formulate — and fight for — alternative, fairer and greener solutions to the crises facing Europe. This year's Forum will be held in Athens on 21-23th of October 2022.
At this conference, The European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN) will present its proposals for the Recommendation on Minimum Income Schemes to the Council and ensure that the voices of people experiencing poverty are given a central role in the European debate on minimum income.
Join the demonstration in Madrid, on Sunday 26 June, organised by international platforms, movements and organisations that oppose NATO, wars and defend peace!
Current notions of security are centered around military deterrence. Increased military spending, arms races, oppression and surveillance in the disguise of safety concerns are affecting all our lives. "We need an entirely new concept of security," say transform! europe's Katerina Anastasiou and Axel Ruppert (Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung Brussels).
The Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation, a member organisation of transform! europe, has issued a call on the causes and rationale behind the efforts for an interregional free trade agreement.
As energy prices soar, millions across Europe are at risk of energy poverty, a political issue burdening citizens with the choice of heating their homes or having food on the table. The time to act is now because having access to clean, affordable energy is a human right!
Find here an overview on the workshops on various topical issues in the framework of the European Forum 2021, a unique space where the left, greens and progressives can come together and discuss on ways to built another future for Europe.
transform! europe will participate in the 2021 European Forum, a unique space where the left, greens and progressives can come together and discuss on ways to built another future for Europe.
This workshop will provide an overview of a study on the socio-economic, political and cultural dimensions of the EU periphery, designed by transform! europe in collaboration with the Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation. The workshop will focus on the political impact of the EU's core-periphery divide.
transform! europe's Spanish observer organisation Fundación Instituto 25M organises this seminar to reflect on the impact of the pandemic on the democratic governance of the European Union.
The group of the Left in the European Parliament organises the 2nd edition of the Transnational Forum on Alternatives to Uberisation. The event will aim to better understand the current issues at European level and to highlight the voice and demands of digital platform workers.
The recent job losses due to the pandemic in the automotive industry and its supplying industry worldwide have shown that the future of the automotive industry must be sustainable and climate neutral. How must a just transition look like? A conference organised by the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung Brussels Office.
On the occasion of the anniversary of the 2001 Genoa protests, this webinar focuses on the political significance of the European Social Forums and their strategies but also their limitations, as well as their impact on left parties all across Europe. Watch the full recording.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, governments have spent at least €93 billion on Covid-19 vaccines and therapeutics globally. But, which interests were defended? Those of profit, or those of public health?
To draw attention to those sectors which, until now, have not been adequately recognised or remunerated and to strengthen the ties between the different feminist struggles in Europe, the Feminism Working Group of the Party of the European Left has organised this webinar.
A turn to socio-ecological transformation or a continuation of the neoliberal exploitation of people and nature? Presentation of studies on the reaction of selected EU Member States to the outbreak of the corona crisis, organised on behalf of transform! europe.
In this conference, the Citizens' Memorandum was discussed by political figures from all across Europe, North and South America, Asia and Africa. The Citizens' Memorandum, formulated by the "Move Up 2021 Initiative", analyses the key obstacles to needed social changes and presents the most relevant solutions that need to be implemented.
Under the motto "Fight Precarity, Eradicate Poverty", the Counter-Summit will strenghten networks of resistance and solidarity – while the official "Social Summit" is promoted by the European Commission and the Portuguese Presidency, the same European powers that have been complacent with the poverty increase.
transform! Italia aims at creating a network among journalists and activists throughout Europe, active in the sphere of the left and who share a desire to construct a leftist European consciousness among people.
The presentation event of our newly launched web magazine "Quistioni" to learn more about the magazine’s aim, content and contributors. The first issue, directed by Paolo Ferrero, hosts prominent personalities of current European debates.
The European Forum of Left, Green and Progressive Forces organised this joint online seminar which aims at supporting trade union activities ahead of the mobilisations on Labour Day, and took place on 28 April, the World Day for Health and Safety at Work.
To analyse concrete solutions to the ongoing healthcare crisis and to discuss ways to fight inequalities in the access to healthcare services – after decades of neoliberal policies –, this webinar brings together health professionals from different European countries.
transform! europe presents the results of the research programme on the economic intervention of nine European countries. An online panel in cooperation with Assoziation für Kritische Gesellschaftsforschung (AKG), an association of German-speaking social scientists.
The industrial and economic slowdown due to the pandemic is no substitute for sustained climate action. How can concrete and more ambitious goals in climate and environmental policies be achieved? Are the measures and goals adopted by the EU, governments and institutions much more than a greening of...
The Global Dialogue for Systemic Change invites you to two seminars on December 10 and 15. These will be in-depth seminars, they will take a form between the political discussion and the webinar. These meetings and the interventions that will take place will be reserved for a list of about a hundred...
transform! europe supports the European Forum 2020 – a dialogue between left-wing, green and progressive groups, from political parties to trade unions and community campaigns, bringing together people from around Europe, and beyond.
Manuel Bompard (La France Insoumise) and Cornelia Ernst (DIE LINKE) invite you to discuss hydrogen and the future of Europe’s energy system – with the participation of Roland Kulke (transform! europe).
transform! europe supports the European Forum 2020 – a dialogue between left-wing, green and progressive groups, from political parties to trade unions and community campaigns, bringing together people from around Europe, and beyond. This year's Forum will be held completely online between 8 and 28 November.
transform! Danmark, a member organisation of transform! europe, together with the European Affairs Committee of Enhedslisten/Red-Green Alliance examines this urgent issue from the perspective of a Member of European Parliament, a Danish MP and a representative of the NGO Ecologistas en Acción.
On 13 and 14 October, transform! with the support of GUE/NGL organizes a workshop which aims to analyze the New Economic Governance status quo of the European Union under the multiple perspectives of the radical left.
In the seventh workshop of our series "Security and the Left in Europe - Towards a New Left Concept of Security", we will discuss with Tom Unterrainer on steps towards a nuclear-free Europe in the current context of the war in Ukraine and the threat of nuclear escalation.
This is the first edition of the webinar series “Resisting the normalization of Pushbacks”. We will discuss different cases of legal litigation against documented pushbacks all across Europe and explore the strategic importance of documentation and legal mitigation for stopping these inhumane practices.
Organised by the Migration Working Group of the Party of the European Left and the network Solidarity for All, this webinar takes place in the framework of the European Forum 2021.
On the occasion of the anniversary of the 2001 Genoa protests against the G8 Summit, this series of events focuses on the political significance of the European Social Forums and the paths and prospects for alternative global movements. Watch the full recordings.
Watch the full recording of the webinar on the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic for the renunciation of the EU’s responsibility towards migrants on boats in distress in the Mediterranean.