Press

Britain's top court sinks Rwanda migrant deal

Camino Mortera-Martinez
16 November 2023
Voice of America
Attitudes on migration are hardening in the bloc, said Camino Mortera-Martinez, head of the Brussels office of the Centre for European Reform.“The political consensus has been for a long time on the issues of increasing returns [of failed asylum-seekers] — which is one of the most tricky parts of any migration policy, and also border controls and the fight against irregular migration — ironically enough, the kinds of things that the U.K. government had been asking for for a long time when it was inside of the European Union,” she told VOA.

Why Spain's amnesty deal with Catalans is source of resentment

Camino Mortera-Martinez
14 November 2023
EU Observer
"There is sufficient evidence to understand that this law has been drafted by the direct beneficiaries of an amnesty for corruption crimes," Camino Mortera-Martínez from the Centre for European Reform (CER), a think-tank, told EU Observer.This violates the rule of law and the legal principle thatone cannot draft criminal laws ad hominem — but it alsohighlights that one cannot adopt "transitional justice laws,without social consensus", she added.

Josep Borrell: The EU’s undiplomatic top diplomat

13 November 2023
Politico
Borrell going beyond what EU countries agreed contributed to the perception that the EU is divided on the conflict, said Luigi Scazzieri of the Centre for European Reform. At the same time, Borrell’s remarks have also helped signal to the Middle East that some Europeans are willing to be more robust in holding Israel accountable, said Scazzieri of the CER.

Israel-Hamas war stokes tensions in Europe

13 November 2023
NBC News
“The war is just deeply polarizing European societies,” Luigi Scazzieri, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think-tank in London, told NBC News. “You have the mobilization of parts of the left, that which starts being in favor of Palestine, but kind of spills over into then being mobilization against the policies that the West is pursuing in relation to the conflict,” he said.

Cameron’s Brexit ‘blunder’ will forever be on his record, say EU figures

Camino Mortera-Martinez
13 November 2023
iNews
Camino Mortera-Martinez, head of the Brussels office at the Centre for European Reform think tank, said Lord Cameron’s appointment was a surprise, but given what followed, he still compares well. “He started everything off, but his successors were so bad that he is probably perceived as something like one of the few adults in the room,” she said. “And he campaigned for staying in the EU, so I guess that counts for something.”

Kemi Badenoch’s booster strategy fails to cover the cost of Brexit on UK trade

09 November 2023
Financial Times
As John Springford at the Centre for European Reform pointed out, the drop in imports from the EU to the UK (while the rest of the EU’s have risen) points clearly to a Brexit impact on UK trade which is plausibly the result of the UK being slowly cut out of EU value-chains.
Judy Asks: Is the two-state solution feasible?

Judy Asks: Is the two-state solution feasible?

09 November 2023
Carnegie Europe
The war between Israel and Hamas makes the two-state solution less viable than ever before. Achieving peace requires political will, compromise, and initiative from the international community.
West underestimated importance of rule of law in Russia - former British ambassador to Latvia

West underestimated importance of rule of law in Russia - former British ambassador to Latvia

09 November 2023
The Baltic Times
In the 1990s, the West missed several opportunities to push Russia in a different direction, primarily by focusing too much on Russia's economic transformation and underestimating the importance of the rule of law.

China’s soaring Dutch imports signal stockpiling of ASML kit ahead of US-backed export controls

08 November 2023
South China Morning Post
“The stunning surge in Chinese imports from the Netherlands over the past few months is a result of Beijing’s buying spree of Dutch chip machinery company ASML before the drawbridge gets pulled up,” said Sander Tordoir, a senior economist at the Centre for European Reform.
European Affairs Committee: The implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine for UK-EU relations

European Affairs Committee: The implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine for UK-EU relations

08 November 2023
Luigi Scazzieri gave evidence at the European Affairs Committee on the implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine for UK-EU relations.

Germany toughens asylum laws amid bitter migration debate

Camino Mortera-Martinez
07 November 2023
Voice of America
Chancellor Scholz has an eye on upcoming European elections, scheduled for June next year, says analyst Camino Mortera-Martinez of the Centre for European Reform in Brussels.
CER Podcast: Where is Europe in the Israel Hamas conflict?

CER Podcast: Where is Europe in the Israel Hamas conflict?

Camino Mortera-Martinez, Luigi Scazzieri, Nathalie Tocci
07 November 2023
Camino Mortera-Martinez, Luigi Scazzieri and Nathalie Tocci discuss Europe's role in the Israel Hamas conflict.
Sander Tordoir

BNR Nieuwsradio: Duitse woningbouw piept en kraakt

07 November 2023
Net als de Nederlandse woningmarkt kent ook die van Duitsland problemen. En die crisis lijkt daar alleen maar erger te worden, blijkt uit cijfers van onderzoeksinstituut ifo. Duitsland kampt met een enorm piepende bouwsector, aldus Sander Tordoir, senior econoom van denktank Centre for European Reform.

Are EU regulators ready for concentration in the AI market?

03 November 2023
EurActiv
“Many of the current players are suffering huge losses, largely because of how expensive the [AI] models are to run,” said Zach Meyers, a Centre for European Reform research fellow.“It seems inevitable that many of the current players will either be left behind or acquired by bigger companies.”

EU calls for ‘pauses’ in Gaza fighting amid doubts over bloc's influence

27 October 2023
Voice of America
“We’ve got some sort of agreement. It does paper over the cracks,” said Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform.
“It took them some time to agree on the eventual formula. They seem to have spent a long time arguing about whether there should be a ‘pause’ for humanitarian purposes, or ‘pauses.’ A lot of people apparently thought that the former sounded a bit too close to a ceasefire, which they didn't want to call for,” Bond said.

Two wars threaten to overload Europe’s leaders

26 October 2023
Politico
Managing both conflicts will be a struggle, said Luigi Scazzieri of the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank. “The EU will have to divide its attention and financial resources between Ukraine and Gaza. Ukraine will be overshadowed, and it will be harder for the EU to agree to providing large amounts of macroeconomic and military assistance to Kyiv.”

Europe's leaders wrangle over calling for pause in Gaza war for fear of undermining Israel

26 October 2023
iNews
“While Europeans can do little to affect the course of the conflict, they can help prevent some of its worst consequences from materialising,” said Luigi Scazzieri, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform.

Future is Blue: Trade wars on wheels? The Commission investigates Chinese electric cars

26 October 2023
Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, shares great insights about the Commission investigation into Chinese state subsidies affecting cars imported to Europe. 

Réduction des normes européennes : engagement raisonné ou stratagème électoral ?

25 October 2023
L'Agefi
Du point de vue de l’attractivité de l’UE, cette nouvelle boussole est en tout cas bienvenue, aux yeux de Zach Meyers, chercheur du Centre for European Reform. «En principe, je pense que cela devrait contribuer à rendre l’Europe plus attractive pour les investissements. Pour un temps, l’UE a été capable d’imposer de hauts standards sans compromettre cette attractivité, car elle s’appuyait sur ‘l’effet Bruxelles’» : le fait que de nombreuses entreprises internationales décident de s’aligner sur les standards européens à l’échelle mondiale pour plus de simplicité.
BBC News: EU pause in military activity is less ambitious than ceasefire

BBC News: EU pause in military activity is less ambitious than ceasefire

23 October 2023
Luigi Scazieri spoke to BBC News, "I think it's fair to say that the initial response [from the EU] was not particularly smooth. In the days immediately after the Hamas atrocities, there were visible divisions between the member-states and different parts of the EU institutions. And in particular, Commission President...