Britain & the EU
UK must swallow the unpalatable Irish backstop
15 May 2018
Theresa May and the Brexiters should have the courage of their convictions and agree to a backstop that grants a special status to Northern Ireland.
Theresa May's meaningless meaningful vote?
08 May 2018
Though many British parliamentarians believe Brexit will harm the UK, it is unlikely that they will derail it. However, Westminster could help to mitigate its negative consequences.
Is Labour selling the UK a Turkey?
12 April 2018
A future UK-EU customs union should not be ruled out. While it would place some constraints on a future UK independent trade policy, the positives far outweigh the negatives.
Brexit and the financial services industry: The story so far
27 March 2018
The City will survive Brexit, but it will not emerge unscathed. In order to remain competitive Britain’s financial services industry will need to adapt, as it has always done.
The member-states and the EU: Taking back control?
22 March 2018
The irony of Brexit is that the EU is becoming more British just as the UK is leaving the EU.
British foreign policy after Brexit: Hand in hand?
22 March 2018
British foreign policy priorities will change little after Brexit, but London will need to find new ways to rally EU support for them.
Bulletin Issue 119 - April/May 2018
22 March 2018
- The member-states and the EU: Taking back control?, Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska
- British foreign policy after Brexit: Hand in hand?, Ian Bond
- Europe's cyber problem, Camino Mortera-Martinez
Will the unity of the 27 crack?
15 March 2018
Some British politicians believe that the 27 will divide during the Brexit trade negotiations, because of their differing economic interests. But disagreements between the 27 are minor, thanks to Theresa May's red lines.
Brexit and rules of origin: Why free trade agreements ≠ free trade
13 March 2018
Without an EU-UK customs union British exporters will face a new barrier to trade: rules of origin. No amount of positive thinking and innovative solutions can eliminate this problem.
Plugging in the British: EU foreign policy
06 March 2018
As part of the EU, the UK has been able to leverage the resources of other member-states to support Britain’s foreign and development priorities. After Brexit, that will be harder.
The Ukraine model for Brexit: Is dissociation just like association?
27 February 2018
Some argue that a Ukraine-style association agreement offers the UK a viable model for its future relationship with the EU, combining both ‘sovereignty’ and close economic ties.
Britain's services firms can't defy gravity, alas
05 February 2018
Britain's specialism in traded services, some of which can be delivered electronically, has led Brexiters to claim that the country's trade will inevitably unmoor itself from Europe. In fact, Britain is not about to enter a "post-geography trading world".
'Canada', 'Norway' or something in between?
26 January 2018
The EU will reject's Britain's request for a bespoke partnership based on regulatory alignment. The UK will have to put up with a Canada-style deal, unless it shifts its red lines.
Bulletin Issue 118 - February/March 2018
22 January 2018
- Poland’s prime minister: New face, same old tune?, Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska
- Holding out hope for a half-way Brexit house, John Springford, Sam Lowe
- From 14 points to 280 characters: Trump vs Wilson, Ian Bond
Holding out hope for a half-way Brexit house
22 January 2018
The UK is considering 'managed divergence' from EU rules, which the 27 will reject. A better strategy would be to remain in the customs union and single market for goods.
Of transition and trade deals
16 January 2018
The UK will not be able to replicate the EU’s free trade agreements ready for March 30th 2019. The only solution is to ask the EU for help.
Conference report: How to save the EU
15 January 2018
50 leading economists, political scientists and experts on the EU considered the forces undermining the Union, and how Europe should respond to them.
UK + EU = Canada+?
01 December 2017
A post-Brexit deal along the lines of the EU-Canada trade agreement would do a lot of damage to the British economy. Can the UK hope for anything better?
Bulletin Issue 117 - December 2017/January 2018
29 November 2017
- Ten predictions for the Brexit talks, Charles Grant
- All is not well in the Visegrad economies, Simon Tilford
- PESCO: Paper tiger, paper tanks?, Sophia Besch
Ten predictions for the Brexit talks
29 November 2017
Arguments over the Irish border may block the start of talks on the future EU-UK relationship. When those talks begin, the EU will reject British proposals for a bespoke deal.