The European Union faces a dreadful future of 'deathbed demography'. A death rattle from which it is unlikely any of the constituent nations of the European Union will survive in a recognisable form. The political classes on the Continent are complacent and strke a similar pose to the post-imperial civil service that ran Great Britain during decolonisation. They saw their role as one of managing decline, but found that their fatalistic decline was overtaken by events. The same fate awaits their successors in Europe, even as they commence the planned transition towards an unknowable future: gifting their countries to an unborn generation whose parents primarly come from elsewhere.
If one examines the response of the European Union to demography, policy is located within the Directorate for Employment and Social Policy. In spawning bureaucratese, the civil service have identified the demographic changes as an opportunity, not a challenge, although low birth rates, an aging population and general decline pose systemic cyanide for their welfare states. The Commission responded on the 12th October 2006 with a Commission Communication that proposed setting up an expert on demography to report on the major issue facing the Continent. This decision was dated the 8th June 2007 with a planned lifespan of five years. No sense for haste in any matters....
After eighteen months of the original challenge, the expert group has just issued its first report, and makes for stultifying reading. Their role is to promote the development of families and improve the quality of life for "persons with care responsibilities". We might define such figures as parents and guardians. Apart from the usual round of meetings and participation in other reports involving demography, the group has issued a brochure:
As far as the European Alliance for Families is concerned, the Group was involved in the preparation of a brochure to promote the use by local stakeholders of EU Structural Funds in projects aimed at supporting families.
The Alliance for Families is a website fostered by the Commission for fostering family growth and presumably more children although they state this objective. This is a state and taxpayer funded development that tells you what a good job some governments are doing of helping families even though they have not managed to reverse demographic decline.
The actions undertaken are risible, ineffective and testament to the European Union's unique combination of planned goals without expected outcomes. If the result is like the rest of their achievement, then birthrates will fall further and the crisis will accelerate. This could be called their 'One Child policy'.