Press
Written evidence from The Centre for European Reform
22 September 2016
Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
Referendums on constitutional questions are too important to be settled by a simple majority of those who vote on the day.
After 'Brexit' EU revives idea of its own joint military command
22 September 2016
The New York Times
But in circumstances where there is no obvious "lead nation", the headquarters would provide the European Union a military planning and operational capacity it lacks, even for small missions, like securing the airport in Mali in January 2013, said Rem Korteweg, a defense analyst for the London-based Centre for European Reform. "The EU normally wants to deploy in co-ordination with diplomacy and development aid," he said, "and now can’t pull it all together."
UK's early economic resilience adds new wrinkle to Brexit
22 September 2016
The Wall Street Journal
John Springford at the Centre for European Reform, believes the lack of an immediate recession makes it more likely that pro-Brexit politicians will win their case for a dramatic break from the EU. ...Consumption, which has sustained growth, also tends to be a lagging indicator. “The mistake that we made in July was that we assumed that consumers were more forward-looking than they are,” Mr Springford said.
Free Lunch: How to help the left-behind
22 September 2016
Financial Times
Beyond redistributive and labour market policies, consider Simon Tilford’s analysis of what ails the British economy. Tilford rightly diagnoses the UK as economically middling by west European standards, in particular in terms of productivity. He blames supply side problems including poorer skills (numeracy and literacy), scarcer housing and more meagre transport infrastructure investment than the other large west European economies...
Un año después, los refugiados siguen huérfanos en la UE
22 September 2016
El Espanol
¿Pero cuáles son las causas del fracaso hasta ahora del reparto de refugiados? Para la investigadora Camino Mortera, experta en cuestiones migratorias del Centre for European Reform, la clave está en "la reticencia de los Estados miembros a aplicar la iniciativa". Y ello pese a los beneficios económicos que los refugiados pueden generar en los lugares de acogida, según ha puesto de relieve un informe del Banco Mundial y Acnur.
A 13-euro entry fee for the EU?
21 September 2016
Deutsche Welle
After Brexit, millions of British people traveling to the EU for vacations or business trips will also have to pay and register with Etias. The same goes for people from Turkey or Ukraine, in the event that the EU grants them visa-free travel. According to Camino Mortera-Martinez of the Centre for European Reform, it's a bad deal. "It would be damaging for British business," she told Britain's "Guardian" newspaper.
ECB said to redouble economic reform push with task force
21 September 2016
Bloomberg
"The ECB has no particular expertise in structural reforms but it can certainly contribute to the debate as economic growth and the supply side of the economy matter for achieving its mandate," said Christian Odendahl, chief economist of the London-based Centre for European Reform. "It should place emphasis on what kind of macro-economic impact reforms may have - that's what it can do best."
Feud over a holiday threatens fragile peace in Bosnia
21 September 2016
The New York Times
"The EU," said Rem Korteweg, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, a research group based in London, "is trying to give these countries encouragement by kicking the can down the road, even as it can't offer them immediate membership."
Brexit Briefing: Mrs May woos Wall Street
20 September 2016
Financial Times
Simon Tilford writes that Brexit will sap the UK’s economic dynamism and aggravate regional disparities without public policy reform.
Theresa May's first address at the 'superbowl of espionage'
20 September 2016
Channel 4 News
Mrs May continues with her mantra about seeking an “ambitious” renegotiation, code for the best of both worlds, a bit of single market traded for some immigration control. Mr Wolf says, echoing Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform, that seems very unlikely.
Could Central European states veto Brexit?
20 September 2016
The Christian Science Monitor
"Free movement is the only way that most such services – in construction, retail, and so forth – can be traded, as construction workers and baristas cannot provide their services remotely," John Springford, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, wrote in a report.
Five reasons why the EU will make life impossible for Theresa May after Brexit – and five reasons why it should think again
20 September 2016
The Telegraph
As Simon Tilford, deputy director at the Centre for European Reform notes, on average, EU states send 8 per cent of their exports to Britain, but we send 45 per cent of ours to the EU.
Brexit: What have we learned so far?
20 September 2016
Survival
On 23 June 2016, the British electorate defied the expectations of political leaders, financial markets and foreign allies by voting to withdraw from the European Union.
Theresa May limbers up for a hard Brexit
20 September 2016
Financial Times
But, as Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform notes, that will be just one of six tough negotiations. The others will be: an ultimate trade pact with the EU; an interim agreement with the bloc, to cover the period between exit and the longer-term deal; re-entry into the World Trade Organisation as a full member; new arrangements with the 50 or so countries that now have an accord with the EU and, presumably, with additional countries, too, such as the US and China; and, finally, UK-EU ties in foreign and defence policy, police and judicial co-operation and counter-terrorism.
Would an EU army weaken Germany’s dominance in Europe?
20 September 2016
The Daily Express
But Sophia Besch, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER), said that none of the key players - including France and Germany - have mentioned the concept. Ms Besch said: "It's really important to make absolutely clear that an EU army is not on the cards. It is a very misleading lens to look at EU defence through."
Would an EU Army weaken Germany's dominance in Europe?
20 September 2016
The Express
But Sophia Besch, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER), said that none of the key players - including France and Germany - have mentioned the concept.
CER podcast: Last week in EU affairs
20 September 2016
Sophia Besch talks to Ian Bond and Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska about the Bratislava summit, President Jean-Claude Juncker's State of the European Union address and defence union proposals.
Een berg Brexit-onderhandelingen: Keep calm and carry on?
19 September 2016
Internationale Spectator
Na de uitslag begint het harde werk. Hoe vorm te geven aan Brexit?
London's Hong Kong dreams
19 September 2016
Politico
"The idea that Britain could just leave and have complete regulatory autonomy is fanciful," said John Springford, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, a pro-European think-tank. "The reason for that should be obvious: London is the EU's principal wholesale financial center. And there is no way the EU will allow for its financial center to be outside the EU."
Why warnings about 'hard Brexit' fall on deaf ears
19 September 2016
Financial Times
John Springford of the Centre for European Reform argues today that this upbeat economic data are allowing the Brexiters to brush aside for now arguments about economic risks. But he warns: "Brexit is not an event but a process of disintegration." He cites evidence suggesting that if the UK ends up with a free-trade agreement with the EU rather than single market membership, the cost could be between 0.75 per cent and 3 per cent of gross domestic product.