Press
Balkan democracies fray as anti-austerity boosts Orban followers
26 July 2012
Bloomberg Business Week
Government moves in Hungary and Romania "suggest to me that this is still a generation that doesn’t have democratic instincts in their blood," Tomas Valasek of the CER, said July 18 by phone. "It takes more for the generational change to cycle some of the old politicians out of the system."
Greek dilemma: New terms, or exit
25 July 2012
The Wall Street Journal
"We're talking about the troika as if it's a monolith, but I'm beginning to wonder if there aren't disagreements cropping up," said Philip Whyte, senior research fellow at the CER, a think-tank in London.
Miliband and Hollande 'turning tide against austerity'
24 July 2012
Politics.co.uk
The British government's focus on consolidating the public finances and push through supply-side reforms is at odds with the new French president's instincts, according to Philip Whyte, a senior research fellow at the CER. "France is almost at the opposite end of that debate," he told politics.co.uk.
Cameron's EU stance is unsustainable and the sceptics know it
19 July 2012
New Statesman
For further reading on UK relations with the EU, by far the best thing published recently is this excellent CER pamphlet 'The continent or the open sea: Does Britain have a European future?' by David Rennie of the Economist.
Europe: Dangerous eurozone limbo
16 July 2012
BBC News
Simon Tilford from the CER summed it up in a paper like this: "Unfortunately, the agreed measures (at the summit) were modest and have already prompted a backlash in various countries, not least in Germany and the Netherlands. Indeed, much of what was agreed at the summit is unlikely to come into effect. All this suggests that the limits of the politically possible may already have been reached."
Integrating the EU defence market: An easy way to soften the impact of military spending cuts?
12 July 2012
Institute for Security Studies
As many European countries introduce their biggest defence budget cuts in years, they have been exploring ways to limit the impact on their armed forces.
Un 49% de los británicos votaría por salirse de la UE en un referendum
12 July 2012
ABC.es
En opinión de Charles Grant, director del Centre for European Reform, «la probabilidad de que el Reino Unido abandone de forma efectiva la UE antes de 2020 es del 50-50, la situación es muy seria», nos confesaba recientemente.
Big banks and think-tanks
12 July 2012
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism
EU-focused Centre for European Reform is more open than most about its sponsors. It told the Bureau that 11 per cent of its £1.2m annual turnover came from the financial services industry. These funders include Barclays, Citi, Deutsche Bank AG, JP Morgan and UBS, to name a few.
Bientôt l'Europe sans la Grande-Bretagne?
12 July 2012
Le Monde
"Il y a 50 chances sur 100 que Cameron ne puisse échapper à un référendum sur l'Europe au cours de la prochaine législature", dit le très europhile et très compétent Charles Grant, qui dirige à Londres le CER.
Think tank of the year awards 2012
11 July 2012
Prospect
The Centre for European Reform has gained a strong reputation for its coverage of European economic affairs, especially because of the work of Simon Tilford, who has offered consistent clarity on Germany's role in the eurozone crisis.
The Socialist, the Tory, and the queen: Hollande visits UK
10 July 2012
The Christian Science Monitor
"Despite the comments at the G-20, Cameron wants relations with France to work," says Philip Whyte of the CER in London. ... "Britain's continued membership in the EU is unclear … momentum for a referendum in three to four year is becoming nearly unstoppable ...
German finance minister asks court not to block euro assistance
10 July 2012
The New York Times
"The fundamental problem with the eurozone is that what happens at the federal level in the United States still happens at the national level in the eurozone," said Philip Whyte, a senior research fellow at the CER. "Unless they correct that flaw, individual states are going to run into trouble, and when they run into trouble, the markets are going to question how much political appetite there is to keep that country within the eurozone."
Merkollande's blossoming friendship and what it means for Europe
10 July 2012
CNBC
"In the long run, the euro is not sustainable without a grand bargain between France and Germany," said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, a London think tank.
Minister seeks to ease Olympics fears
10 July 2012
Financial Times
Charles Grant, a regular Eurostar traveller and director of the Centre of European Reform, said he had faced delays of more than an hour disembarking, complaining that UK officials were worse than those in any authoritarian regime he had dealt with. "The UK has a problem with its reputation and image at the moment. I do believe this borders problem – at airports and at St Pancras – is reinforcing the overall impression that we don’t like foreigners ...and that we are shutting ourselves off from the world," he told the Financial Times.
As Europe struggles, young job-seekers suffer most
09 July 2012
Associated Press
Leaders of the 27 EU countries agreed late last month on a bold plan to pump cash into Europe's troubled banks and help governments deal with their excessive debt and high borrowing costs. But the plan is likely to provide little immediate relief to Europe's youth. What they need is economic growth that produces jobs. "That's the real urgency," says John Springford, research fellow at the CER.
Hollande visit fraught with friction
09 July 2012
Financial Times
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said there was "a de facto dirty deal" between Britain and France, whereby London ultimately retained the rebate and French farmers continued to receive Brussels handouts. ..."What the Brits don't understand is they don't have any leverage," Mr Grant said.
Is Norway's EU example really an option for Britain?
07 July 2012
The Telegraph
Charles Grant, founder of the Centre for European Reform, said: "The City of London represents 75 per cent of Europe's financial markets, and it would be ridiculous to be sidelined like that."
Vote to impeach president adds to turmoil in Romania
06 July 2012
The New York Times
"There's a greater and greater political trend toward an emphasis only on the eurozone," said Hugo Brady, a senior research fellow at the CER, referring to the 17 countries that use the currency.
Cyprus - buoyed by gas hopes
06 July 2012
EU Observer
For Europe as a whole, a Cypriot energy route would be a "plus," says Stephen Tindale from the CER. Particularly as it is "questionable" whether Europe's other planned pipeline, Nabucco, will get off the ground. "But given the inevitable involvement of Turkey and Israel, this will be even more complicated," says the analyst.
Le débat sur la sortie de l'UE s'amplifie au Royaume-Uni
05 July 2012
Le Monde
Jo Johnson, un député conservateur - et frère du maire de Londres - va dans le même sens, dans un récent article pour le CER : "Une UE sans la Grande-Bretagne est désormais évoquée comme une vraie possibilité."