Introduction

This final chapter is devoted to the question of where the European Union (EU) is heading in the future. By future we do not mean the intermediate term, which would be concerned with how the EU should deal with the aftermath of the financial crisis, the euro’s problems, budget deficits, Turkish membership and the like; these are dealt with in the relevant chapters. Concentration here is on a longer perspective.

To offer a meaningful answer, one needs to take into consideration the views of all those who play influential roles in the drive behind European integration, and set them against the vision of the founding fathers. It is, however, neither feasible nor desirable to provide a full and detailed chronological account, due to the need for brevity and that only major episodes highlighting the visions are of the essence.