Britain & the EU
This is no time to listen to the siren call of the euro
14 October 2008
The Guardian
Since the Labour party entered office in 1997, the UK economy has become more "European". One of the government's first acts in office was to sign up to the EU's social chapter. It followed this with the introduction of a minimum wage in 1999, along with sustained increases in public expenditure.
The exit beckons for Britain
18 October 2007
New Statesman
As EU leaders gathered for their latest summit, Britain's Euro sceptics fired their heavy artillery rounds. The Conservatives, the Sun, Mail and Telegraph whipped themselves into a fury, convinced that if they took their analysis of the EU reform treaty to new hyperbolic heights, they could force the government to offer a referendum.
A newly confident Turkey is starting to bridge the gap
12 September 2007
Financial Times
Sir,
Geoffrey Wheatcroft rejects David Miliband's arguments for keeping the European Union's door open for Turkey ("Structural flaws in Miliband's Turkish bridge", September 10). Like most critics of Turkish accession, he argues that the country is too big, too poor and too Muslim. Like most critics, he is short-sighted.
He takes today's...
Geoffrey Wheatcroft rejects David Miliband's arguments for keeping the European Union's door open for Turkey ("Structural flaws in Miliband's Turkish bridge", September 10). Like most critics of Turkish accession, he argues that the country is too big, too poor and too Muslim. Like most critics, he is short-sighted.
He takes today's...
Russia: Analyst sees potential in Europe's new relationship
17 July 2007
Radio Free Europe
Katinka Barysch, the head of the Russia research program at the London-based Centre for European Reform, has written extensively about politics and economics in Eastern Europe and advised Britain's House of Lords and European Commission on foreign policy.
We do not need a referendum
23 June 2007
The Guardian
Thank goodness for the agreement in Brussels last night. Without a deal, the EU would have been mired in arguments on treaties, institutions and process for a prolonged period.
Constitutional fudge
19 June 2007
The Guardian
So far, Britain's stance on the German attempt to revise the EU treaties has been - from a British perspective - broadly reasonable.
What future? France's Socialist party needs a rethink
07 May 2007
The Guardian
France's Socialist party needs to rethink its identity and its strategy. Having lost three presidential elections in a row, the party needs to learn from centre-left parties not only in Britain, but also in Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries and Spain.
Britain would be unwise to thwart Europe's treaty
03 April 2007
Financial Times
Germany's ambition to salvage large parts of the European Union constitutional treaty may provoke a serious rift between Britain and its partners. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown may be heading for a collision over what to do about the German plan. But the general view in Britain seems to be...
Ségolène’s speech at Villepinte
21 February 2007
Policy Network
For some time, Ségolène Royal, the French Socialist presidential candidate, benefited from a good degree of sympathy in the UK. Her charm, her praise of Tony Blair’s policies and criticism of some French policies like the 35-hour week had gained her support in British media and political circles.
How Gordon sees the world
26 August 2006
The Spectator
Imagine the scene. It is 2007. The pale November sun is slowly melting the frosted roofs of Camp David. A throng of journalists — bristling with cameras, arc lamps and microphones — jostle for position around two podiums.
Europe - Don't write the obituaries yet. A new France could put Britain on the sidelines
06 June 2005
New Statesman
The gleeful obituaries are piling up, not just for the EU constitution, but for the country that torpedoed it. France is in a mess, we read; its politics are paralysed, its economy is over-regulated and it just can't accommodate itself to globalisation with an Anglo-Saxon face.
But before we gorge on...
But before we gorge on...
Europe - Did we make the right choice?
03 June 2005
Yorkshire Post
Though often criticised as being undemocratic, popular referenda have been pivotal in the history of the European Union. Recent events in France and Netherlands aside, perhaps none more so than the 1975 poll confirming Britain's membership of the then European Economic Community.
Un sale coup pour Blair
30 May 2005
L'Express
Comment réagit-on outre-Manche au non du peuple français?
Beaucoup de Britanniques opposés à la Constitution s'en réjouissent! Chez les conservateurs, dans la presse de droite europhobe, même au sein du Labour, où tout un courant ne veut pas de ce traité. Pour Tony Blair et le gouvernement britannique, c'est au contraire...
Beaucoup de Britanniques opposés à la Constitution s'en réjouissent! Chez les conservateurs, dans la presse de droite europhobe, même au sein du Labour, où tout un courant ne veut pas de ce traité. Pour Tony Blair et le gouvernement britannique, c'est au contraire...
What If the British Vote No?
02 May 2005
Foreign Affairs
In June 2004, the member states of the European Union concluded the negotiation of a treaty that, if ratified, would establish a European constitution that would make substantive changes to the way the union works. For the first time, an individual would be appointed president of the European Council, overseeing...
A British No would destroy more than the treaty
16 March 2005
Financial Times
If opinion polls are a fair guide, all European Union countries will ratify the new constitutional treaty - except Britain, which seems set to vote No in the referendum due in mid-2006.
Get your coat Mr Blair – you've just been asked to leave the EU
17 February 2005
European Voice
There are a host of ifs and buts. But the UK might, just might, be asked to leave the European Union if British voters reject the constitution, warns Charles Grant What if current opinion polls are a good guide to voting intentions in the ten member states that will hold...
It's time to do your homework
17 June 2004
The Guardian
For the past seven years Britain has been led by the most pro-European prime minister since Ted Heath, yet the mood of the country has never been more Europhobic.
Mighty Europe
05 February 2004
The Wall Street Journal
London, Paris and Berlin are working hard to put the past behind them. After a year that began with bitter rancor over Iraq and ended with the collapse of negotiations over the European constitution, the desire of pro-Europeans to face the future is understandable.
Beneath the rows and gesture politics, Europe's...
Beneath the rows and gesture politics, Europe's...