There is a prevailing sense in Europe that “you can have it both ways”, mixing economic growth with fewer working hours.
The EU will decline
- Tuesday, 12 December 2006
In an interview made by the BBC's Westminster hour, professor Alberto Alesina of Harvard University, co-author of a book called The future of Europe - Reform of decline, stressed that Europe's economy "has lost the ability to grow" and that "political decline will soon follow". According to Alesina, European work less than American but still benefit of "a confortable life of long holidays, short working hours and over-generous welfarism". This situation was sustainable in a previous era of high European productivity growth but it is no longer the case. There is a prevailing opinion that you can "have it both ways", mixing economic growth with fewer working hours, Alesina said.
Talking about public spendings, professor Alesina says that "sometimes in countries like Italy and Germany a lot of the public spendings is not particularly productive or reducing inequality, so there is a lot of room for cutting spendings in these countries without increasing poverty and inequalities".
Professor Alesina will be discussing his new book at an Open Europe and Policy Exchange event at 6.30pm on Tuesday 12 December.
Source BBC