With the European elections in June of this year, the UK election most likely due to be held in the second half of 2024 and German elections scheduled for the autumn of 2025, change might be in the air, but will it always be for the better? The European elections are projected to lead to an increased vote for the populists, underlining the need for established parties to better connect with the electorate and to provide a credible vision for the future, as well as an effective strategy on how to address the manifold national and international challenges. In the UK, it is widely assumed that the Labour Party will come into power, but the electorate still wants a clearer picture of the UK’s direction under such a government. If the current German government wants to turn around its low poll ratings, it needs to revive growth by addressing the declining competitiveness of its economy, to a large extent the result of high costs and an ever-increasing bureaucracy. The UK and many other European countries would also benefit from focussing on and alleviating pressures in these areas, as it is clear that our competitors across the globe are not asleep and if they have not yet done so are about to overtake us in a number of key areas, not just in artificial intelligence and e-mobility.
In this context, it is worth recalling that in 2000 the Lisbon Agenda aimed at making the EU ‘the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion’.
As nations, the UK and Germany are often very similar in terms of their Weltanschauung (view of the world), therefore we should jointly work towards reviving the spirit of Lisbon.
Dr Ulrich Hoppe
Director General
German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce
