Thursday 7 April 2016, 7pm–8.30pm, Emmanuel Centre, London, SW1P 3DW
Has the EU lost sight of its original purpose? Critics argue that agreements such as TTIP illustrate just how undemocratic the EU has become. Are weaker nations paying the debt of a financial crash which they did not cause? Has the EU been reduced to a vehicle for free market economics? Calls for more transparency in EU decision-making is nothing new. Yet, as we see the rise of continental euroscepticism and the EU becomes more fractured, is it time to reform?
Since it was founded in 1957, the European Community has changed beyond recognition. Once a great signifier of peace and a symbol of European cosmopolitanism, relations within the European Union today are stretched to their limits. The 2008 financial crash exposed the brittle foundations of the EU; the imposition of an austerity-bound bailout in Greece revealed its vulnerability to prevailing political ideologies. The ongoing migration crisis shows its failure to agree how to react to the crisis of our times.
Join us for an evening of discussion with self-described ‘erratic Marxist’ Yanis Varoufakis, Green Party MP Caroline Lucas, leading figure of the international leftTariq Ali, with more to be announced.
Running time: 90 minutes, no interval.
Yanis Varoufakis’s new book And The Weak Suffer What They Must?: Europe, Austerity and the Threat to Global Stability is published on the day of the event. Pre-order a signed copy of the book with your ticket (Book & ticket option) at the checkout.
Wheelchair users and visitors who require an assistant may bring a companion free of charge. To book a free companion ticket please email guardianlive.events@theguardian.com
