I’ve not been especially kind to some of the EU’s ‘leaders‘ in this blog in recent times, and here’s another one for the series – European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services, Charlie McCreevy.
This is a quote from McCreevy, dated Sunday 5th June 2005 from the Irish newspaper Sunday Business Post:
We in Brussels, and member state governments, must start re-connecting with the thinking of the ordinary citizen. I am talking about the great majority of people for whom transatlantic dialogues, inter-institutional committees, gender institutes and the like hold little interest. They are people who just want to earn a decent living, be able to afford a few pints, go to a game of football and have a bit of sex
Is that really the best we can do? From the noble goals of achieving peace and stability in Europe, via rebuilding Europe’s economies, all we are now about is allowing the people a bit of football and sex? And said with a macho disregard of gender balance. Dire.
Günter Verheugen has paid higly his critics against civil servants … The same thing happened to Liikanen and many others … I think that EU civil servants can fight back when the red line is crossed and that’s a good thing.
Give the man a break! His remark seems to be taken a bit out of context (and it is actually quite old) I don’t see anything wrong with it, even though it might be a bit too laddish. I actually can tell you that this is exactly how a lot of people I know feel like (and most of them have university degrees). And you can replace the pints with a couple of glasses of wine and the football with t.v. or shopping and the message would be the same.
He should be judged by his performance and at least he is taking a stand against member states in some fields, e.g. the state-run gambling monopolies in certain member states, hence the initialling of infringment procedures.
So pathetic and sexist ! Does he at least find time to do these things ?
Eugh, what a horrid thought!
mccreevy, try to run for mayor !