Good comment. Responsible politicians shouldn't adopt this core tactic of Europhobia ie whereby problems aren't just problems to which we need to find a solution; instead every problem is framed as an existential challenge playing for ultimate stakes
theguardian.com/world/2020/apr…
theguardian.com/world/2020/apr…
Imagine if every time we disagreed with a government policy or decision, we immediately questioned the underlying legitimacy & indeed the very existence of the entire state. Yet the influence of Europhobia means that's exactly the pattern we see over and over again with the EU...
& what makes it more frustrating? A big part of the very purpose of the EU is to help find solutions to problems that countries can't solve alone; indeed, to problems that often have no solution, but rather need to be managed over time / their impacts minimised as best we can
Benchmark for evaluation shouldn't be: has the EU solved this major problem / crisis completely & to everyone's satisfaction? That's often an impossible ask. Real question is usually: has it made a positive contribution compared to what the state could have achieved acting alone?
Bearing in mind (which again, the arch-detractors usually deliberately don't): the EU is not a state, it is an international organisation; it has only limited legal & policy competences & tools; it depends entirely on cooperation & trust with & between its Member States to work.
