The European Union must take a critical look at its own past if it is to successfully build its future, MEP Alfred Sant told the European Parliament. 

Dr Sant said Europe had to examine both the failures as well as achievements of the European project over the last sixty years.

"Frequently I get the feeling, in this Parliament and elsewhere, that such discussions too often take exclusively an ideological perspective -- that of pilgrims intent on reaching the new Jerusalem," the S&D MEP said.

Dr Sant was speaking during the debate on a White Paper on the future of Europe presented by the European Commission. The White Paper presents five potential paths the EU could take from now to 2025, and comes ahead of the Rome Summit to be held later this month. 

He said that all too often, discussions about the EU's future ended up getting tied up in "technocratic approaches grounded in liberalism" to the detriment of the social dimension.

"Perhaps what we need is a self-critical, historical review of what the European project has been, frameworked in the realities of European history since the French Revolution.” said Dr Sant.

The MEP's calls for Europe's social dimension to be taken into account reflect a critique of the White Paper by S&D grouping president Gianni Pittella, who said the document's failure to emphasise social rights was "disappointing".