Douglas Carswell's Blog

Death of the Euro - the psychology of grief

In her book On Death and Dying, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross identifies the five stages of grief.

First comes denial - "it can't be happening". Then anger - "it's not fair".

Next comes the bargaining. Then depression. Finally acceptance.

We seem to be witnessing the European political elite going through much the same process as they face up to the demise of the Euro.

When Euro President, Herman Van Rompuy's spokesman, Richard Corbett denied any preparations were underway for a Greek exit, he was at the denial stage.

George Osborne seemed to be so, too, when on Monday he hit out at "speculation".

When Greek leaders angrily demand better terms from the rest of the club, they're part way between the anger / bargaining phase.

I suspect our own political leadership will be moving from the denial stage to eventual acceptance. David Cameron's recent comments seem to suggest that the process has begun.

In so far as there are differences between European leaders, it is a reflection of the various stages they are at.

My concern is that we, along with the rest of the EU, are still in denial about the broader economic picture. Western governments have lived beyond their means for too long. We have barely begun to recognize the fact that our Big Government model is bust, let alone deal with it.

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