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Evert-jan Quak

Evert-jan Quak

Evert-jan Quak is now Research Officer for the K4D Programme at the Institute of Development Studies. Evert-Jan was a freelance knowledge broker for The Broker on the themes ‘Inclusive Economy’ and ‘Food Security’. Over his career, he has specialized in international economics, corporate social responsibility and trade issues. Evert-Jan is the author of the book Het onzichtbare label (‘The invisible label’), in which he tackles the question of why current corporate social responsibility policies do not seem to work. Evert-Jan has a degree in international economics and economic geography from the University of Utrecht. He has a mixed professional background, both as a journalist and a policy advisor in international development.

Ideals versus reality

15 years after the introduction of the euro, the reality is quite different. Instead of more, we see less solidarity among European member states. At the same time, there are rising trends in inequality, unemployment and low paid jobs – trends caused by the financial crisis, some might say, but such analysis overlooks several important details.

The race to the bottom explained

Labour market policy has been one of the few levers available to different Eurozone countries to improve external competitiveness.

The economic logic: why countries entered the Eurozone

The idea that the euro would bring more stability, trade and employment to Europe was economically overemphasized for political and commercial reasons.

How neglecting the Eurozone budget rules helped countries politically and economically

Countries need more time during recession to decrease their budget deficit while increasing economic growth.

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