PERSPECTIVE A growth programme for industrial renewal in Europe Towards a European industrial recovery Frank-Walter Steinmeier May 2012 n Since the collapse of deregulated financial markets, more and more countries in the eurozone have been falling into the vicious circle of high debt, refinancing crises, recession, and ever-higher debt quotas. The escalation of the eurozone crisis poses the greatest threat to Europe‘s prosperity today. n Economic weakness will also weaken Europe‘s reputation and reduce its influence on the world stage. The image of the European integration project and its function as a role model for other regions of the world is in danger of being damaged. n Europe needs a comprehensive investment and growth programme that offers an alternative to one-sided policies fixated on spending cuts. Such a programme must concentrate on the real economy, the modernization of structures, improved com­petitiveness, increase of value added, and the strengthening of European integra­tion. n In contrast to conventional economic stimulus programmes, this growth programme should not be financed with new debt but should rather pool existing resources from the EU‘s Structural Funds and be nourished with revenue from a financial trans­action tax. A great deal now depends on the political will of European governments to get serious about a financial transaction tax.