Press
Between Russia and the EU, Eastern Europe's future is uncertain
22 March 2017
The Moscow Times
Eastern Europe, dotted with frozen conflicts of Russia’s making, is stuck in transition to an uncertain future.
Brexit briefing: German lessons for Brexiters
20 March 2017
Financial Times
Two publications will help readers to form an idea of Germany's attitude to Brexit. One is “Berlin to the Rescue?”, a paper written by Sophia Besch and Christian Odendahl for the Centre for European Reform think-tank. The other is “Berlin Rules”, a book by Sir Paul Lever, Britain’s ambassador to Germany from 1997 to 2003. ...Ms Besch and Mr Odendahl make the point: “Germany will be neither a hardliner nor particularly accommodating in the Brexit talks ...Berlin wants to preserve the EU and make sure that the EU-27 stick to a unified position; it considers disintegration of the EU the biggest Brexit risk.
Why Berlin won't give Theresa May an easy ride over Brexit
19 March 2017
The Observer
Germany's British exports are far less important to it than loyalty to the European project.
Bye-bye Britain
18 March 2017
Die Zeit
"Sie verlässt sich sehr auf ihre Berater, doch die wissen über die EU nicht viel", ergänzt Charles Grant, Direktor des europafreundlichen Centre for European Reform.
Why Brexit divorce talks don't favour Theresa May
17 March 2017
Bloomberg
Yet the longer talks go on without an agreement, the more pressure will build on May to accept any terms that she’s offered. That risks “economic chaos,” says Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform. “So if Britain wants a half-decent deal, it needs the goodwill of its partners.”
UK's Brexit fight with Scotland escalates as May rejects vote
17 March 2017
Japan Times
“What you have now is Sturgeon maneuvering to get May to offend as many Scots as possible and May trying to maneuver to offend as few as possible,” said Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the London-based Centre For European Reform.
Relief washes over European leadership after Dutch vote
16 March 2017
The Boston Globe
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, a London-based research organization, said the “Trump factor” had played a role in “making people think twice about voting for a populist, as people have seen that if you elect a populist you can get all kinds of wacky policies.” “At the same time,” he added, “we have seen a drop in populism in Europe since Brexit, as citizens have realized that, while a protest vote is fun, it can lead to the uncertainties of Brexit, which are not funny at all. That helped shift the mood in the Netherlands.”
Jesse Klaver, el Trudeau holandés que lleva a los Verdes a máximos
16 March 2017
El Espanol
"Los apoyos de los socialistas se han fragmentado. Muchos han ido a GroenLinks y su carismático nuevo líder", explica a EL ESPAÑOL el investigador holandés Rem Korteweg, del think tank Centre for European Reform.
One image perfectly captures why populists didn't win the Dutch election
16 March 2017
Quartz
Rem Korteweg, a senior research fellow at the think tank Centre for European Reform (CER), says the French and Dutch political systems aren’t really comparable. “If you want to talk about the populist tide, the tide is still there,” he says, but “there are definitely breakwaters you need to take into account,” including how “the Dutch political system works.”
TVN24 BiS: Brexit już niemal przesądzony. Co to oznacza dla Polaków
16 March 2017
Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska talks to TVN24 BiS about what Brexit will mean for immigrants in Britain and for British people themselves.
TOK FM: Theresa May zapowiedziała uruchomienie Brexitu pod koniec marca
16 March 2017
Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska speaks to TOK FM about the impending Brexit talks and what is to come over the next few months.
Who won the Dutch election, what happens now and what will Geert Wilders do next?
16 March 2017
The Express
Mr Wilders has got the second largest party and will play an important opposition role, according to Rem Korteweg, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER).
“He is going to keep ramming home his agenda," Mr Korteweg said today in the wake of the provisional election result last night.
One image perfectly captures why populists didn't win the Dutch election
16 March 2017
Quartz
Rem Korteweg, a senior research fellow at the think-tank Centre for European Reform (CER), says the French and Dutch political systems aren’t really comparable. “If you want to talk about the populist tide, the tide is still there,” he says, but “there are definitely breakwaters you need to take into account,” including how “the Dutch political system works.”
Hollanti äänestää ja Eurooppa jännittää – HS tapasi äänestäjiä pikkukaupungissa: ”Wilders ei saa nousta valtaan, hän on vaarallinen”
15 March 2017
Helsingin Sanomat
Mutta kyselyihin ei uskota Britannian brexit-äänestyksen ja Trumpin vaalivoiton jälkeisessä maailmassa. Hollantilaiset saattavat ujostella kertoa gallup-nikkareille tukevansa Wildersiä, kertoo Centre for European Reform -ajatushautomon tutkija Rem Korteweg.
BBC Radio 4: The World Tonight
15 March 2017
Charles Grant talks to The World Tonight about what could lie in store should Britain leave the EU without an exit deal (from 30.25).
CNN: Netherlands elections, after exit polls suggest Rutte ahead of Wilders
15 March 2017
Charles Grant speaks to Richard Quest on CNN to discuss the Dutch election result.
Au Parlement néerlandais, chacun sa chapelle
14 March 2017
Liberation
«Une coalition sans Wilders sera un véritable Rubik’s Cube politique, écrit Rem Korteweg, chercheur au Centre for European Reform (CER). Ce système donne l’avantage aux partis qui défendent une cause unique, mais le résultat, c’est qu’il est presque impossible de dominer la scène politique.» Retour sur cette mosaïque de mouvements petits et jeunes, qui pourraient rafler des sièges au Parlement et donner la réplique à une future coalition hétéroclite.
The four traps Theresa May must avoid in her EU divorce letter
14 March 2017
The Guardian
To avoid disaster, Britain’s prime minister needs to get article 50 talks off to a good start – and that begins when she writes to Donald Tusk.
Ban on head scarves at work is legal, EU court rules
14 March 2017
The New York Times
“It is a very bold step,” said Camino Mortera-Martinez, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform in Brussels, describing the ruling as a landmark decision, if also a political and pragmatic one. “Recently we have seen the court being much more attentive to the political winds rather than being so legalistic, because of the recognition that the E.U. is at risk of collapse.”
British PM May faces fresh Brexit hurdles despite winning parliament approval
14 March 2017
The Straits Times
"The thing historians will think quite strange is that, given that there's no majority in the country and no majority in parliament for a hard Brexit, how are we getting a hard Brexit?" said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform. "The answer is there's no opposition and the Tory party, although a lot of it is quite soft, they are very scared of the eurosceptic newspaper groups."