Summary of the speech

The welfare crisis is principally due to two factors.

The loss of power by the nation-state, especially as countries have to a great extent lost control over the parameters of their development. Globalisation has meant that states are no longer able to control exchange flows. It is thus extremely important to have supranational entities for efficient control.

The second critical aspect is the questioning of the mode of functioning of the state. Specifically the state is losing its collective rules. There is mass unemployment and an ever increasing number of citizens are without safeguards. Work organization is becoming "ungrouped", and therefore evermore people are excluded form protection systems. In a society that is increasingly one of individuals, this produces uncertainty.

Faced with such a mobile and liquid society, the welfare state needs to update its tools and rethink the forms of intervention and safeguards. Until the 70's the safeguard needs were expressed by citizens and fulfilled by the traditional welfare state. Today this needs radical rethinking. It is a complex challenge and no simple solutions exist.