It had to be considered that lack of trade resulted in less development cooperation funding and companies active in European markets would be less likely to invest in foreign direct investment (FDI). The economic challenges required the EU leadership to resolve and understand the difficulties that the EU was facing politically, for example elections, the Northern European countries subsidising the South and due to this the politicians in the North were not popular with their electorate. He requested an understanding as to how MEPs predicted the whole scenario evolving. He indicated that Europe had more than likely only six weeks to sort itself out.