Blair: End state intervention in economies

ZURICH, Switzerland, Nov. 14 (UPI) -- European governments must end crisis support of their economies as soon as possible to remain competitive, Tony Blair said in Switzerland.

Speaking Friday to the Zurich Business Society, the former British prime minister said Europe was losing ground to Asian nations economically and that protectionist reactions to the financial crash and resulting recession would only make matters worse, Swissinfo reported.

Denouncing what he called "short-term populism" on the part of governments, the former British Labor party leader said European economies would only rebound if state interventionism is scrapped in favor of "a sensible long-term policy," the news agency said.

"There is a short-term populism that pushes us toward more government intervention," Blair was reported as saying. "The purpose of government intervention is to stabilize the situation, but going forward what we need is a thriving and effective private enterprise to lift our economies up and through to better times."

Blair, who was appointed a special Middle East envoy for the United Nations, European Union, United States and Russia after stepping down as prime minister in 2007, called for European countries to slice bloated welfare systems at a time when unemployment is at historic highs.