Big in Bruges?

The UK wants a bigger presence in Europe.

David Cameron, the British prime minister, has been struggling on the domestic political stage to win support for what he calls “the Big Society” – the idea of encouraging the voluntary sector to step in and look after social needs when the state cannot or should not.

Just in time comes news that ought to gladden Cameron’s big society heart. A group of individuals and corporations has gathered together enough money to fund a scholarship for a British student at the College of Europe – this in addition to a scholarship already established in memory of Roy Denman, a British diplomat.

The volunteer donors are stepping in to help because the British government (led by one D. Cameron) last year cut back the number of state-funded scholarships to the college  (whether in Bruges or Natolin) to the level commensurate with a small member state, and reserved them for British civil servants.

A fundraising event with the aim of supporting more scholarships is being held in Brussels this month, hosted by Jonathan Faull, the European Commission’s director-general for the internal market, a graduate of the college. Giving the Big Society a Euro-friendly touch should ensure that it bites the dust soon…

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