The European Commission Uses New Lisbon Treaty Powers to Crack Down on Greek Spending

[Joanne98]

First use of new powers made legal by the Lisbon Treaty

Consequently, EU officials are using new powers under the Lisbon Treaty to restructure pensions, health provision, job markets and commerce and the Greek government will be made to report progress monthly to the European masters in Brussels and accept any measures they may impose.

Almunia admits, or boasts perhaps:

“This is the first time we have established such an intense and quasi-permanent system of monitoring.”

“The EU has made Greece into an ‘economic protectorate’ “

Some Greek voices on the left say Brussels has in effect taken Greece over as an economic protectorate. However, the EU may ultimately find it has no choice but to call in the IMF to aid and restructure the Greek economy.

Greece’s labour unions responded to the EU’s action by calling a general strike on February 24 and it looks as though there is battle ahead. Greeks are unwilling to take the living standard cuts demanded by fat cats in Brussels, who are these days exceedingly fat and not subject to control themselves. The EU’s own accounts have not been approved for years and the eurocrats are shameless despite constant talk in Europe about abuse of the vast sums of taxpayers’ money they handle and abuse of expenses.

The German government – which has the economic clout to save the Greeks – is doggedly refusing to help, seeing no reason why it should suffer becauseGreece has overspent. And the German people are unwilling to bail out another nation even if it is a southern neighbour.

Spain meanwhile has a budget deficit running at 11.4pc and one of its largest banks, BBVA, announced a 94% drop in profits for 2009. Spain’s mortgage association has said the country’s real estate sector is ‘bankrupt’ and four million Spaniards are unemployed. It may not be long before the EU deploys its new powers and its Greek austerity policy in Spain.

Continued>>>
http://therearenosunglasses.wordpress.com/2010/02/06/world-economic-collapse-about-to-overtake-european-union/

It's beginning to look like the EU was set up to impose the Shock Doctrine.

[westerebus]

1. Charlemagne resurrected.

The New World Order is looking a lot like the old Old World Order.

[roamer65]

2. France and Germany are definitely in the driver's seat ot the EU.

The British are very lucky they got out of the ERM in the early 1990's. They now have the currency flexibility that Eurozone members do not.