Can anything spark Europe’s economy back to life?

The report follows another, published in April, by Enrico Letta, another former Italian prime minister, which looked at the single market. Both focus on how to make Europe more competitive. The authors want to boost innovation, increase funding for riskier ventures (commercial, financial or scientific) and exploit Europe’s scale by bringing together hitherto fragmented markets. In short, they want to make Europe a bit more European, which in these areas at least is smart. The questions are as follows: Will countries be willing to see integration in sensitive sectors such as defence? Will they be able to overcome the narcissism of small differences? And will they be willing to spend as required?