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CER
BULLETIN, ISSUE 58
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2008 |
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CER
IN THE
PRESS
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INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE
16 January 2008
The rise of sovereign wealth funds touched raw nerves in the developed
world in 2007, but the need to recapitalise banks in the wake of the sub-prime
crisis has seen a change in attitude. "Since the credit crunch began,
you can sense a different mood," said Philip Whyte of the Centre
for European Reform. "All of a sudden sovereign wealth funds
have become knights to the rescue, and that has defused some of the protectionist
edge to the issue."
REUTERS
14 January 2008
Barely two weeks into its maiden European Union presidency, Slovenia has
learned its first lesson: Get used to criticism from all sides. ..."My
first thought is: welcome to the wonderful world of EU presidencies,"
said Tomas Valasek of the CER. ..."There is no way to go through
the process (of presiding over the EU) without ...being criticised from
either left or right. Europe is a goulash of many different preferences,
many different foreign policies," said Valasek.
INTERNATIONAL
HERALD TRIBUNE
18 December 2007
Simon Tilford, chief economist at the CER said, "It [The ECJ's
ruling on the Vaxholm case] does not have an impact on countries like
the UK where there is a minimum wage and no collective bargaining covering
construction, though it could affect Sweden, Denmark or Germany."But
he added that the effect was likely to be less dramatic than some Swedish
critics suggest. "I don't think the Nordic model will fall apart
because it’s easier to have companies coming from abroad and tendering
for contracts," Tilford said. "At the edges there may be some
erosion but I don’t think it poses a real threat."
LE
MONDE
18 December 2007
Angela Merkel breaks with Berlin's diplomatic pragmatism. "Merkel
is ready to stand firm. She says: 'Yes, we will do business with the Russians
and the Chinese, but I am not afraid to point out differences where they
exist,'" explains Katinka Barysch of the CER.
THE
DAILY TELEGRAPH
14 December 2007
Even pro-Europeans said Mr Brown's failure to attend the December European
summit had weakened Britain's diplomatic standing. Hugo Brady of the Centre
for European Reform think-tank, criticised "very ham-fisted diplomacy"
on the part of Mr Brown.
TIME
12 December 2007
Part of the problem is the way the EU's six-month presidencies bring out
national egos. "The current system of ridiculous six-month presidencies
means that countries will want to use their time to earn prestige,"
said Hugo Brady of the London-based Centre for European Reform.
He suggested that the Lisbon Treaty could bring an end to such practices,
as it will replace six-month presidencies with 18-month stretches jointly
shared by three countries, as well as a permanent president to host the
summits.
FINANCIAL
TIMES
6 December 2007
Most small British businesses break a slew of minor national and EU laws
before they have even fed the office cat in the morning. But Simon Tilford
of the CER still rates the UK at the top of the class for implementing
and enforcing EU laws.
EU
BUSINESS
28 November 2007
Holding little or no sway over Israel, the EU has instead sent hundreds
of millions of euros each year in humanitarian aid and will undoubtedly
help fund the second of the "two states" outlined in the Middle
East roadmap. "The EU is always the one to pick up the Palestinian
tab," said Clara Marina O'Donnell of the Centre for European Reform.
"If the EU wants to have more influence, it has to improve its image
and its clout in Israel's eye. Israel still trusts particularly the US,
and tends not to trust the EU to be a reliable actor or to deliver,"
she said.
FINANCIAL
TIMES
27 November 2007
"Even if the EU assumes that China will remain a success story, it
is not clear what kind of power it will become," says Charles Grant
director of the CER. "Europeans will hope that China takes
its place in the multilateral sort of world that they would prefer. But
China may not want a rules-based international system with strong multilateral
institutions."
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A new phase in EU-Iran diplomacy by Tomas Valasek
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