In the Financial Times today George Soros showed his concern and intelligence on the future of Europe. Readers know I am anti-BREXIT but I am not altogether sanguine about the EU and Soros reflects many of my views - for instance I am totally against the Euro as a common currency since it does not allow countries that fail to devalue - Greece and now Italy are two recent examples. Soros noted that the 'EU faced three key problems: the refugee crisis, territorial disintegration exemplified by Brexit and an austerity policy, prompted by the financial crisis, that has “hindered Europe’s economic development.”' “The EU is in an existential crisis. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong,” he said. To escape the crisis, “it needs to reinvent itself.” Mr Soros said tackling the European migration crisis “may be the best place to start,” but stressed the importance of not forcing European countries to accept set quotas of refugees. He said the Dublin regulation — which decides which nation is responsible for processing a refugee’s asylum status, largely based on which country the individual first enters — had put an “unfair burden” on Italy and other Mediterranean countries, “with disastrous political implications.” While austerity policies appeared initially to have been working[MH comment: No I totally disagree they were disastrous...Keynes analysed and recommended pump priming in a recession and debt relief in a growth spurt...not the other away around!] “We may be heading for another major financial crisis,” he said. Meanwhile, years of austerity policies had led working people to feel “excluded and ignored,” sentiment that had been exploited by populist and nationalistic politicians, said Mr Soros. He called for greater emphasis on grassroots organisations to meaningfully engage with citizens. [MH: I dont like the latter sop, the issue of wage stagnation and worsening income distribution wont occur through simple engagement..check out my friend Guy Standing's book on 'The Precariat Charter' for more on that!] Looking to Brexit, Mr Soros said negotiations were diverting the EU’s attention from the wider crisis. “Brexit is an immensely damaging process harmful to both sides,” he said. Although the economic case for the UK remaining in the EU is strong, he said, the bloc “needs to transform itself into an association that countries like Britain would want to join, in order to strengthen the political case.” To do this, the EU should more clearly differentiate between the EU and the eurozone and recognise that the euro has “unsolved problems” that “must not be allowed to destroy the EU,” he said. The “outdated” legislation by which new members are expected to join the euro should be repealed, he said, and countries outside the eurozone must not be made to feel relegated to second-class or “inferior” positions.[MH: Quite Agree!]