Most people in the business and financial community believe that western Europe needs a reform agenda based on more active capital markets, less regulation of business and employment and lower levels of taxation and social protection. They shake their heads wearily as the European public persistently rejects these proposals. And there have been many opportunities to shake those heads in the past few months.
Germany's far from radical Christian Democratic Union could only take the chancellorship from the tired Gerhard Schröder by forming a grand coalition with his Social Democrats. Modest proposals to introduce short-term contracts for young French workers were rejected in demonstrations on the streets of Paris. Last week, Italian voters chose to replace Silvio Berlusconi, who talked about the reform agenda even if he did not do much, with Romano Prodi, whose coalition is unwilling even to allow him to talk about it.
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