Press
BBC Radio 4- Today programme: Brexit options
24 July 2019
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform discussed the potential Brexit options available to Boris Johnson and the trade-offs inherent to each (from 69 mins).
US president hails Boris Johnson as ‘Britain Trump’ ... but will the bromance last?
24 July 2019
South China Morning Post
“While the two leaders have an affinity, their interests are not always aligned,” said Luigi Scazzieri of the Centre for European Reform in London.
“Trump is unlikely to make any concessions to the UK in a trade negotiation, instead seeking maximum advantage for the US by forcing the UK to open up its agricultural sector and health service: requests that may make it impossible to reach a deal at all.”
“Trump is unlikely to make any concessions to the UK in a trade negotiation, instead seeking maximum advantage for the US by forcing the UK to open up its agricultural sector and health service: requests that may make it impossible to reach a deal at all.”
Parliament Live: International Trade Committee - IT failures in the financial services sector
24 July 2019
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, along with Dr Lorand Bartels, Dr Anna Jerzewska and Robert Hardy, gave evidence on IT failures in the financial services sector.
Boris will have to play a diplomatic blinder to win over sceptics across the world
23 July 2019
The Telegraph
Charles Grant from the Centre for European Reform says EU capitals think a no-deal outcome is now more likely than not. “They don’t trust Parliament to stop it,” he said. The Grieve manoeuvers are increasingly dismissed as noise. This is significant. It does not mean that the EU will drop the Withdrawal Agreement. “They think they are well-prepared and can take a no-deal on the chin, and they think we are less prepared,” said Mr Grant.
Britain's two-faced foreign policy
23 July 2019
Financial Times
Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform, is also scathing. “In any sane world, we wouldn’t be simultaneously threatening a no-deal Brexit while at the same time asking for a European Maritime Force to protect commercial ships in the Gulf.”
EU prepares huge aid package for Ireland
22 July 2019
The Times
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said that EU figures were increasingly pessimistic about a deal being done. “I would say that, having talked to senior figures in Brussels and other European capitals, they now believe no-deal is more likely than not,” he said.
Room for Thought: Europe - a Leaver and Remainer talk across the divide
20 July 2019
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform and Douglas Carswell discussed thier differing views of Europe in this interview.
BBC World Service: The Real story - Europe's migration standoff
20 July 2019
Luigi Scazzieri a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform discusses is it time for the EU to forge a new pact on migration and asylum?
EU officials don't relish the idea of no deal – but they are prepared to play hardball
19 July 2019
The Guardian
Brussels is gloomy about the prospect of Britain crashing out, but political realities could see a compromise emerge.
Kristendemokraten von der Leyen drejer EU-Kommissionen til venstre
18 July 2019
Kristeligt Dagblad
Men samtidig var det blandt andre de nationalkonservative polske medlemmer af Parlamentet, der sikrede hende pladsen for bordenden i EU-Kommissionen. Og de østeuropæiske regeringer tager fejl, hvis de regner med at få medvind fra Ursula von der Leyen, mener Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska, seniorforsker ved tænketanken Centre for European Reform i Bruxelles.
What's next for Europe's capital markets?
18 July 2019
Project Syndicate
Without the UK, even integrated EU capital markets would be too small to meet the funding needs of European businesses. That is why global engagement, even at the cost of losing regulatory control, is critical.
CER podcast: Does the EU need a common arms export policy?
17 July 2019
Sophia Besch and Beth Oppenheim discuss the state of the EU's arms export regime, and whether the Union needs a genuinely common and enforceable policy.
Johnson ‘closing off escape routes’ on road to no-deal Brexit
16 July 2019
Fiancial Times
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said Mr Johnson — the frontrunner — could have chosen a strategy of “putting lipstick” on Theresa May’s deal and trying to ram it through parliament in the autumn.
A Boris Johnson declaration of no deal?
16 July 2019
Financial Times
To get a sense of how grim things appear, it’s worth looking at this Twitter thread by Charles Grant, head of the Centre for European Reform. He has been holding talks with EU officials and yesterday spelled out what the four routes to a revised Brexit deal could be.
Tories back Johnson despite mistakes
16 July 2019
The Guardian
Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform says the EU will not blink on renegotiation. It could, however, offer a new political declaration on the future relationship, confirm it does not want the backstop to be permanent, and offer a longer transition – though none of those are sure to make a difference in Westminster.
European divisions on display as Ursula von der Leyen wins narrow approval for EU's top job
16 July 2019
The Washington Post
“European elections delivered a much more fragmented Parliament,” said Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska, an expert on European politics at the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank. “What is going to be pretty prominent is that the euroskeptics who failed to obtain a blocking minority in the European Parliament will try to expose the vulnerabilities of this pro-European coalition.”
Europe can’t afford to turn away from London
15 July 2019
City A.M
Today, the EU’s former director-general for financial stability, financial services and capital markets union Sir Jonathan Faull reignites the debate and lays down a challenge to authorities on both sides of the channel.In a new report for the Centre for European Reform, Faull and top City lawyer Simon Gleeson question how the EU can push ahead with its highly-prized (but stalled) ambition of creating a dynamic EU-wide capital market without continued access to the City of London.
Ursula von der Leyen isn't perfect, but she's better than the alternative
15 July 2019
Foreign Policy
Opposing the compromise candidate for EU commission president will further empower populists and Euroskeptics.
Chief trade negotiator: UK had little influence before Brexit vote
15 July 2019
Sky News
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform and a member of the government's Strategic Trade Advisory Group, told Sky News that trade policy remained "in a state of flux" and that he was "not sure it's true" to say that Britain's influence had grown.Mr Lowe said: "The UK right now is not viewed as a bastion of free trade. Brexit is viewed as protectionism - we're putting up barriers to trade with our biggest market. There's some hope that the UK might move into this role in the future, but to be honest, until the relationship with the EU is settled, people are just holding their breath."
Brexit effect? Europe's populists back away from calls to leave the union
14 July 2019
NBC News
“Populists are very good at reading public opinion,” said Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, a senior research fellow at the Center for European Reform, a think tank in Brussels.