'I want a Europe that is working' says Bettel

"People have questions and we see that in election results", Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel told journalists from all EU members states at the European Investment Bank earlier this week.

From the annexation of Crimea, the election of Donald Trump as the President of the United States, to the migrant crisis and the UK's departure from the EU, Bettel argued that the world is "a bit more chaotic than before", it must address "big challenges" and deal with growing nationalism and popularism.

"These call for some thinking on our democratic systems and the shape of our future".

The role of politicians

And the most recent example comes from Germany, where the far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD) took 12.6% of the votes, entering the German Bundestag for the first time in modern history.

"I cannot explain their entrance in the Bundestag," said Bettel, further adding that he had the same reaction to the news as when he learnt about the National Front (FN) first round results in French presidential elections earlier this year.

"The role of politicians is being questioned", stated Bettel.

He went on to talk about the appearance of words such as "Lügenpresse" or the "lying press", a pejorative political term used in Germany since the 19th century to describe the press and the media in general, when it is believed they are not covering the truth. 

"This is not a good sign," argued Bettel, asking politicians and journalists alike to build trust and fight against populism and violent reactions towards the press.

"I'm a born optimist and as a politician I will denounce every abuse," he said.   

He believes that journalists should be commenting, analysing, criticising and also be positive in their reporting, to fight "the easiest way to do politics".

He showed his commitment to journalists and claimed that he will "always support the press and its freedom", at the same time denouncing the "dark side" of politics, when "you have a political programme blaming others".

"The difference between a democrat and a populist is that very often I have very complicated answers to the easiest questions. Populists have the easiests answers to the most complicated questions. Even if it's a lie, they don't care as long as it sounds good," argued the prime minister.

Bettel believes that people "take things for granted" because the younger generations of Europeans have never experienced war.

Luxembourg's competitiveness

Bettel looked back on his time as prime minister so far and told journalists that the Grand-Duchy's unemployment rate has dropped from 7.1% to 6% and that Luxembourg's economic growth is expected to increase from 4.4% to 5.2% next year.

He also talked about Luxembourg's financial centre being scrutinised, due to Panama Papers and LuxLeaks, and outlined that the Grand-Duchy needs diversification, with fintech and bio-technology being among the government's priorities.

"It's important to be front-runners in innovative areas," he argued, referring to investments in space technology and space mining. 

Bettel took a clear stance in opposing the Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) and more regulations in financial aspects unless they are implemented by all members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). 

"Why should we be less competitive than countries like Switzerland, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong or the United States?" Financial regulations should be done internationally, not at European level," he argued. 

A Europe for people

As Minister for Communications and the Media, Bettel also raised the issue of social media and warned that some members of the public don't question the validity of information spread on social networking sites. He demanded more social media education in Europe.

Touching upon the rights and freedom of Europeans to travel, to pursue education, to marry and work, Bettel believes Europeans have common goals and values because "Europe is a space for people, not just an economic space".

Nonetheless, when looking at the future, the Luxembourg prime minister acnokwledged there are differences between some members states and advocated for a "multi-speed Europe".

"I prefer a two-speed Europe than no Europe," he said, further adding that the "train will not wait for all 28 passengers".

"We shouldn't block the countries that want to move on," he explained.

Brexit

Asked by journalists as to how clear and convincing the speech of the UK Prime Minister Theresa May's speech was last week in Florence, Bettel stated that he prefered May's speech "much more" than the discussions heard in the UK in the last six months.

He warned, however, that it was too difficult to say whether there will be "concrete results" in a month's time when EU leaders meet at the European Council summit in October and will decide whether “sufficient progress” has been made in the Brexit negotiations.

Schengen and Eurozone

Talking about opening Schengen and Eurozone to some of the newest EU member states, he did not support the idea of Romania and Bulgaria adopting the euro or joining the Schengen area because the "EU is not able to have a common immigration policy".

"I want a Europe that is working," he argued, adding that although he is a "fully-convinced European" and agrees with the ideas of the European Commission President's speech in his State of the Union earlier that morning, "the timing is not there".

Nonetheless, he acnowledged that the two countries -- who joined the EU in 2007 -- "shouldn't be kept hostages" because they have made significant progress and are meeting the required criteria.

He also explained that other EU member states should stop criticising Brussels "for everything" because it consisted of all 28 member states, "it is all of us".

"The European Union should shape itself as a union of citizens," he concluded.

Tallinn Digital Summit

Bettel also told journalists about the Tallinn Digital Summit which takes place on Friday. The Luxembourg prime minister will attend the summit along with EU heads of state and government and participate in discussions on plans for digital innovation in Europe.

The summit discussions will have a long-term perspective -- until 2025 -- and will focus on areas including trust, security, e-government, industry, society and economy. All these topics score high on Luxembourg's very own agenda.

(Roxana Mironescu, roxana.mironescu@wort.lu, +352 49 93 748)