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Germany and France have laid down a "competitiveness pact," basically a 4-point plan to advance the EU bailout fund.
It was met with resistence because it reforms areas like taxation and wage policy which some nations link to national sovereignty.
“We welcome stronger economic coordination on the basis of best practices, but we will always remain the master of our taxes, pensions and wages,” said the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte.
The German/France tag team wants a common EU retirement age, the end of wage inflation indexes, unified corporate taxes and "debt brakes" that punish free-spending nations.
OPINION: GUARDIAN EDITORIAL:
"...in Ms Merkel's eyes, the solution seems to be relatively simple: for the eurozone to thrive in its second decade, Spain, Greece, Italy and all the rest need to turn into Germany".
AND: "Germany is no model for the rest of the eurozone to follow. It is too reliant on exports, while its domestic economy remains anemic. The euro rulebook needs a rewrite, true – but by more than one pair of hands."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/feb/05/germany-eurozone-angela-merkel
