Daily Inspiration Quote by John Hutton

“European social model” is doing a lot of diplomatic heavy lifting here: it’s both a cherished brand and a political shield. Hutton’s line is engineered to reassure voters who fear that “economic change” is code for dismantling welfare protections, while quietly telling policymakers that the old rulebook can’t keep pace with globalization, technological disruption, and the EU’s own sprawling regulatory machinery.

The intent is pragmatic and managerial. By framing reform as “in order to make sure” the model “keeps up,” he positions change as preservation, not rupture. That’s a classic reformer’s move: you don’t argue against the social settlement; you argue that only modernization can save it. The subtext is that EU lawmaking, as currently designed, is too slow, too rigid, or too fragmented to respond to competitive pressure. “Now necessary” tightens the screw. It suggests urgency without naming a villain, which is useful in Brussels-speak where consensus is currency.

The phrase “embrace a new approach” avoids specifics for a reason. It invites a broad coalition to project their preferred solution onto it: streamlined directives, faster implementation, “better regulation,” more harmonization, more subsidiarity, less red tape. As an educator, Hutton’s register leans technocratic: the audience is meant to feel there’s a syllabus for reform, a method, a rational plan.

Contextually, the quote sits inside the long EU argument over whether regulation is a brake on growth or the scaffolding that makes capitalism politically sustainable. Hutton is trying to keep both halves of that equation in the room.