The EU governance model continues down the slippery slope path of undermining its authority and more importantly its values. The reason for this is quite simple in my opinion which is the fact that there does not seem to be a base level of acceptable conduct/a clear set of ramifications where there is a clear breach to EU values for non-complying members once a state is admitted into the organisation. This fact coupled with weak leadership and over complicated internal processes could eventually end up destroying the Union or at least impairing it to the point of irrelevance. Every day that passes without seriously challenging the membership of both Poland and Hungary is an indication that the foundation that the Union was built upon is shaky and could eventually crack wide open at any moment without warning. In this day-and-age particularly post the Trump presidency and with the surge of alt-right nationalist ideology which is contrary to Liberal values the EU was founded upon these values cannot survive on hot air. Politicians need to finally stop bragging about our values because the fact of the matter is these can never be protected by constantly adopting defensive/reactive measures rather than developing a clear/proactive/long term/adaptable strategy able to deal with current & future challenges while always seeking with razor sharp focus the best interest of EU citizens and the environment. Values need to be embedded into our DNA from early on in our life rather than merely preached to us by people in high authority who think they know better but either do not understand the concept of values in the first place or don’t possess the leadership skills and/or vision necessary to make them relevant to an ever growing complex geopolitical, social and economic landscape which in fact collectively serve as the context upon which these values need to relate to/evolve with not in theory but in practice. In short it’s about Pragmatism in Approach/Vision & Confidence in Execution; I hope the EU can begin following this model for a change and take decisive action in all that undermines its mission while baring in mind that Time in situations like this is of the utmost importance to ensuring damage limitation.