The European Liberals: Concerned about Macron’s weakness

The alliance of liberals in the EU Parliament is as inconsistent as the answers to the question of what “liberal” means. The Germans stand above all for a free economy. But the group is strong because of the French. For now.

The Liberals are still the third strongest force in the European Parliament – they have French President Emmanuel Macron to thank for this. His ruling party ensured a strong increase in votes in the 2019 European elections, which Macron immediately rewarded himself for.

The L-word had to disappear from the European party name: In France, the word “liberal” does not have a good ring to it, as many associate it with heartless Manchester capitalism. In Brussels, the traditional Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) became the new alliance Renew Europe.

For the European elections in June, the diverse Renew team did not even try to find a common top candidate. The answers to the question of what liberalism is today could never be brought to a common denominator. Renew therefore has three top candidates: the Frenchwoman Valérie Hayer, the Italian Sandro Gozi and the German Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann.

Security policy and Reducing bureaucracy

She would like to deal with security policy and armament issues at the European level, Strack-Zimmermann explained in an interview with the ARD Studio BrusselsShe is aware that hardly anything is decided on an EU-wide basis in this area. Nevertheless, she believes that a Commissioner for defence issues is necessary.

The Free Democrats have their sights set on the Commission President – the Liberals are conducting an anti-von der Leyen election campaign. The top of the Brussels Commission has shackled the economy with ever new regulations – this text is missing from almost every election campaign speech.

Brussels as a bureaucratic monster – in the election campaign, the Free Democrats are relying on simple messages. When asked where bureaucratic regulations should be reduced, FDP MPs name two areas in particular: environmental protection and climate protection.

Environmental protection not at the expense of the economy

Some environmental regulations that had been negotiated for months were stopped with the votes of the German Free Democrats and the Christian Democrats. The result: no reduction in the use of pesticides on Europe’s fields; no more controls and therefore no more penalties for agricultural operations under ten hectares; an end to the obligation to set aside at least four percent of the land for fallow land. The party headquarters of the FDP and CDU/CSU also decided differently on the issue of phasing out the combustion engine by 2035, just in time for the European election campaign.

From the liberal perspective, environmental protection must not become a competitive disadvantage for Europe’s economy. This is almost exactly the opposite of green and social democratic positions – they fear that without ecological restructuring, Europe’s economy will be left behind internationally, especially by China.

Other demands made by the Liberals in the election campaign are less controversial: safeguarding the rule of law, more European cooperation in education and research, improving competitiveness – many other parties could also sign up to these. In any case, there are no rigid coalitions in the European Parliament; people work together depending on the legislative project.

Probably fewer seats for Renew

However, it is completely unclear how strong the FDP will be in parliament after the European elections. As the national leader of the list, Strack-Zimmermann will be counting on getting a seat in parliament, because only just under one percent of the votes are needed in Germany for a seat in the European Parliament.

In the French Renew camp, there are completely different concerns. Not even Macron’s party colleagues believe that the success of 2019 will be repeated. With around 17 percent, they are well behind the far-right Rassemblement National of Marine Le Pen. An election victory for the president like in 2019 is a long way off – and with it an even remotely strong presence of the liberal group in the European Parliament.