Live from Brussels (and Westminster)
We're live from Brussels this morning on the eve of a crucial European Union summit which will determine if the there is such a thing as a coherent, Europe-wide response to the current economic crisis.
Don't hold your breath: this is a city in which our trendy boutique Hotel Orts can't even supply us with hot water.
Yes, the Daily Politics team had to take a cold shower this morning, which was bracing and no doubt good for the soul, because the hotel water heater had broken.
These things happen but we discovered the hotel knew about it when we checked in last night -- and mysteriously forgot to mention it!
Our little inconvenience, of course, pales into insignificance against the problems facing an increasing number of people who now face life on the dole as the recession bites ever deeper.
This morning and many commentators expect it to reach 3m within the next 12 months.
Dole queues are lengthening all over Europe and it's not clear what the EU can do about it.
France and Germany do not agree with Britain's call for further fiscal stimulus to the Euro-economy, protectionist noises grow ever louder and parts of Eastern Europe are on the brink of economic collapse, which could lead to major sovereign debt defaults and yet another financial crisis (this one made in Europe).
We'll be talking to the EU Commissioner for Monetary Affairs, , about the risks to the Eurozone and what Brussels can do about them.
We'll also be getting reaction to the latest economic news from , former Labour cabinet minister and one of the big beasts of the Labour firmament, and , a Tory Eurosceptic MEP -- not just the latest rise in unemployment but a new report from the the British economy will suffer more than any other major economy this year -- declining almost 4% -- and still be in decline next year, when the rest of the world is growing again.
How does that square with Gordon Brown's claim that we are better placed than anybody else to survive the downturn?
We might be in Brussels but we'll still bring you PMQs live at noon, courtesy of Anita, who's minding the shop in London, and after that we'll have a lively debate between and a Dutch MEP Europhile. She will also be joined by Dame Kelly Holmes.
That's all on the Daily Politics -- live from Brussels and London -- this morning from 11.30 on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ2 and afterwards on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ iPlayer.
How could miss it?
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