Il Giornale sees the ECB's interest rate raise as a far-reaching decision: "The long wait is coming to an end. Today, at around 1:45 pm, nothing unexpected will take place: the ECB will ... raise the key interest rate. ... It was to be expected that President of the ECB Jean-Claude Trichet would not bow to the pressure of certain governments which demonstrated a lack of diplomacy. Trichet has always stressed the autonomy of the institution and the legitimacy of the unpopular decision. He has also repeatedly emphasised that the bank would react with resoluteness - a choice of words that can only lead one to conclude that the measure will have consequences." (03/07/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Europe
All available articles from » Rodolfo Parietti

Ciaran O'Hagan, fixed income strategist at the investment bank Société Générale, calls in the Financial Times for a clear signal from the European Central Bank: "The 25 basis-point rise in interest rates ... is nothing more than a token move. It will do little to calm expectations of yet more inflation over the summer. It will also have little impact on the economic outlook. ... A sharp reduction in western consumption would ease the destabilising impact of the commodity price shock on developing countries and is environmentally friendly. Such considerations do not concern the monetary authorities. The onus is rather on western governments to support policies that favour both macroeconomic and geo­political stability. Yet the ECB cannot stand idly by and engage in wishful thinking. Luckily, investors currently see the ECB's inflation-fighting credentials as credible. ... There is now a window of opportunity for the ECB to reinforce that credibility and raise rates by far more than the market expects. It should not be allowed to pass." (02/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Ciaran O'Hagan

In its leading article, the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat calls for political independence for the European Central Bank. "Political leaders feel that raising interest rates will endanger economic growth, and call such a move absurd. ... And the unions stress that inflation cannot be controlled in this way. ... Europe's leading decision makers are attempting to persuade those responsible at the Central Bank to adhere to the previous strict rate. The ECB has intentionally isolated itself from political influence so as to maintain the credibility of an independent decision maker on fiscal policy. ... If it bows to pressure now it will suffer a loss in sovereignty." (03/07/2008)

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The Correio da Manhã complains that the ECB's plans to raise the key interest rate will place a heavy burden on consumers: "The price of goods and services is rising with each month that passes. Some economists describe this inflation as the hidden tax that is eating away at families' buying power. The European Central Bank is desperately fighting against this phenomenon, but ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet is about to lose the battle. Inflation is at four percent in the Eurozone. ... Trichet has said that there is a risk that inflation could explode out of control, and this is why he will announce an increase in the base interest rate today - a decision that will lead directly to an increase in the mortgage interest paid by millions of families who are already struggling with rising food and fuel prices from month to month. Starting today Europe's families will have even less money. If we continue like this things will only get more and more difficult, Trichet!" (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Miguel Alexandre Ganhão

Colombian forces have liberated the former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt from her six-year captivity at the hands of the FARC guerilla movement. La Repubblica newspaper detects US-French rivalry in the liberation. "The kidnapping of Ingrid Betancourt was followed ... with intense interest by both governments and the general public in Europe and America. The attractive politician with French and Colombian citizenship became a global symbol for courage and suffering. ... [French President Nicolas] Sarkozy had counted freeing her ... among his most pressing tasks. Certainly, her liberation is a triumph for him, although he would have preferred a political solution ... to the radical intervention by the Colombian armed forces. His displeasure was heightened by the presence of American presidential candidate John McCain in Bogotà. ... [Because] according to sources, the military action was primarily aimed at freeing three American hostages. As chance had it, Ms Betancourt was being held with them." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Bernardo Valli

The left-wing daily Frankfurter Rundschau is annoyed at Germany's criticism of the new package of social measures presented by the European Commission: "For fear that the free market could be restricted the EU's key players have allowed social Europe to fall by the wayside. The EU Commission has finally taken measures to remedy this, but of all countries Germany, with its 'social market economy', fiercely opposes the package. ... German critics in particular are using the bureaucracy argument to attack the Brussels initiative. As if every socio-policy law since Bismark had not caused problems for companies. ... The EU Commission's social package must be protected against exaggerated criticism from Germany. This is not to say that there are no problems whatsoever with Brussels' plans. For all those who believe the Commission's promises to bolster the information rights and the right to have a say of employee representatives, there is certainly room for improvement as far as the law governing European works committees is concerned. ... Yet it is nonetheless commendable that the Commission is taking steps to complement single market rights with standardised social regulations. It should not stop at this." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Werner Balsen

The daily newspaper Der Standard discusses Turkey's role in the unresolved question of Cyprus: "With the waning hope of EU membership prompted by the anti-Turkish stance of certain European states - led by France, but also Austria - Turkey is increasingly losing its motivation to make concessions on Cyprus. Certainly, Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government did initially bring new energy to the negotiating table, however the nationalists now have the upper hand. ... And for its part the EU has nothing more to tempt either side to a compromise, after the Greek Cypriots were allowed to join even in the absence of reunification. The old battle-axes in the Greek Cypriot leadership may have been replaced, but the differing historical narratives continue to stand like walls between the south and the north." (03/07/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Enlargement / Neighbourhood Policy, » Cyprus, » Europe, » Turkey
All available articles from » Adelheid Wölfl

A constitutional court according to the German model would have been able to prevent Sweden's contentious new surveillance law, Detlef Quast, a visiting professor for information science at Nuremberg University, argues in the Swedish daily Sydsvenska Dagbladet. The law allows the Swedish secret service Försvarets Radioanstalt (FRA) to read all the electronic communication that crosses the Swedish border. "According to an internal FRA paper all correspondence must be read. ... Once this has been done the data is passed on to foreign intelligence services. This procedure is explicitly laid down in the draft law. ... We are financing the FRA with our taxes and paying telephone companies high fees so that they can put us under surveillance. ... A constitutional court like that in Germany, which prevents laws that violate people's personal integrity, would presumably have taken action against a law that restricts civic freedom as this law does." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Detlef Quast

The Slovenian daily Delo considers the problems facing Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi with the rubbish crisis in Naples: "Berlusconi promised the city would be clean by the end of this month, and that the waste incineration plant would be ready by the end of the year. ... The prime minister who is wrestling with judges in Rome over a ban on police and judical wire tapping is fighting in Naples with the reality faced by all Italian governments in the last twenty years. Every so often the criminal underground, the Camorra, demonstrates who is really in charge in Campania when mountains of waste pile up on the streets. The Mafia makes a fortune transporting industrial waste from the north of the country to Naples, which is why the city's trash so frequently cannot be removed." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Tone Hocevar

The poverty experienced by Eastern European countries and the solidarity it engenders could serve as an example to the West in the current economic crisis, writes commentator Dan Alexe. "The growing economic crisis shows how important social solidarity is, and how comforting it is to know you can knock on your neighbour's door anytime you like for a bit of pepper or a cup of oil. The economic crisis ... is seriously damaging people's morale in Western Europe. The recession is changing their mentality. ... Social status is fragile, and conventions are superficial. Poverty can make a virtue of necessity, and soon there will be politicians who brag about how they shop at [the discount supermarket] Aldi, the way some now ride to work on bikes instead of being driven by a chauffeur." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Dan Alexe

Donato Ndongo-Bidyogo, a journalist and writer from Equatorial Guinea, criticises in El País the West's hypocritical attitude towards Africa: "In Africa there are heads of government who will soon celebrate their 50th anniversary since taking office and no one is making a fuss about it. Like [President Robert] Mugabe they are all cruel and corrupt, and they and their cronies are accumulating huge fortunes at the expense of Africa, which in itself is not poor but which has been reduced to poverty by robbery and abuse of power. The African view is that these kleptomaniac tyrants could not exist without the consent and backing of the Western states, the main beneficiaries of the situation. For they are buying up our immense natural resources for ridiculous prices and profiting from the immigration of intellectuals as well as work migrants for cheap labour. And when the crisis comes they dig up their dirty old mechanisms for restricting the free circulation of persons, but not of goods." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Donato Ndongo-Bidyogo

The Polish daily Polska expresses the view that for Polish work migrants the return to their booming home country is now worthwhile. "Driven by hopelessness, low salaries and an unbearably hostile job market in which conditions were dictated by employers, hundreds of thousands of Poles decided to leave Poland in search of work abroad [following EU membership in 2004]. ... It has taken four years for everything to change. The situation in Poland is improving rapidly while the countries of the old EU are slowing down. Our economy is growing by five to six percent annually while Ireland, which is regarded as a model within the EU, is facing a recession this year. ... Here in Poland salaries are rising by 10 percent per year, while in the West of the continent they can barely keep up with inflation. The increasingly tough conditions on Western Europe's labour markets mean that immigrants are less and less welcome there." (03/07/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Social Policy / Employment, » Migration, » Labour market / Services, » Poland, » Europe
All available articles from » Alina Białkowska

The daily La Stampa discusses an article in the German newspaper Stuttgarter Nachrichten on the announcement by the German soft toy producer Steiff that it would repatriate its Chinese production facilities: "Producing goods in low-cost countries does not always pay. On the contrary, it can damage a company. This is what many German firms that made a pell-mell dash for Eastern Europe and China in search of lower production costs are now recognising. And they are coming back. Steiff is the latest company to fall victim to the illusion of the same quality for half the price. ... The reason: mistakes in planning premium products, insufficient quality and excessive transportation and storage costs. 'Germany, world champion at exporting jobs' was the title of Der Spiegel news magazine in 2004. Now the backlash has begun: the advantages offered by local production in terms of labour productivity and technological innovation compensate for the higher wages." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Alessandro Alviani

Many European politicians want to step in to curtail excessively high salaries for top managers. The Guardian writes that business leaders in Britain have nothing to fear: "High-paid executives worried by change in Europe can take solace from Labour - here they are still untouchable. ... Of course, despite much of Europe's apparent swing back towards its collectivist inheritance, the EU's progressive aspects sit uneasily with all kinds of schemes taken from the neo-liberal handbook. When it comes to the executive pay debate, however, the argument is clear enough. What is taking shape in Europe isn't some crazed drive to eat the rich, but a modest move on the more iniquitous privileges enjoyed by some of the people responsible for our current economic problems. As Britain once again pulls away, a refrain thrown at the Brown government with increasing regularity springs to mind: if not now, then when?" (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » John Harris

The Anglican Church is in crisis over homosexuality. The Times calls on the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, to be true to his liberal roots and stand up for the rights of homosexuals: "Dr Rowan Williams portrays himself as radically inclined, yet on homosexuality he has aligned himself with a conservative cause. ... Why does the Archbishop not say out loud what we all suspect that he believes? ... To listen to the Archbishop, the infamy of US imperialism is unparalleled in human history, yet on gays in the Church he marches, if not shoulder to shoulder, in perilous proximity to the American Right. ... The ethical course for an archbishop who is a tireless critic of politicians can only be to stand up for what we must assume he believes - the full enfranchisement of homosexuals in the Church. Since that would appear impracticable, his alternative is to do what ministers are frequently enjoined to do, which is to explain his position, and resign." (03/07/2008)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Minorities, » United Kingdom
All available articles from » George Walden

The Society of the German Language wants German to be enshrined in the country's constitution, the Basic Law. The conservative daily considers this measure unnecessary: "In everyday life [the German language] sometimes rears its uglier head. It is not just the gibberish spoken by the children of immigrants that is horrendous. Many people talk in incomplete sentences, can no longer spell and do not like reading - a phenomenon for which the digital era is also no doubt to blame. ... On top of this the language is peppered with Anglicisms. ... Many educated people get annoyed about this and set up associations to save the German language. ... But could it not be that what is supposed to come across as a sign of self-confidence ... is more a sign of lacking confidence, or even of desperation? Even countries with such passages in their constitutions continue to have the problems mentioned above. Legislation ... cannot improve actual usage. We should leave our Basic Law as basic as it is now." (03/07/2008)

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All available articles from » Andrea Seibel