Britain & EU member-states
State of the Union: The good deal
25 June 2007
The Wall Street Journal
The deal in Brussels on a new treaty this weekend is good news for those who hope the EU can become a more confident and effective contributor to global security.
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.
Sarkozy - the new Napoleon
23 April 2007
The Guardian
As a former activist in the French Socialist Party, it pains me to welcome the success of a right-wing populist in the first round of the presidential election. But I think that a Nicolas Sarkozy victory may be the best outcome for France and for Europe.
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...
Get with it, Europe
09 March 2007
The International Herald Tribune
It is seven years since the European Union launched its Lisbon agenda of economic reforms aimed at transforming the competitiveness of the European economy by 2010. Despite the pessimism, there has been much to cheer.
A French force
01 March 2007
Prospect
Nicolas Sarkozy's call for a "rupture" with France's past makes him an exciting figure. In the last five years—during stints as chairman of the Gaullist UMP party, finance minister and interior minister—he has proved himself a hyperactive and effective politician.
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.
Adieu, Europe?
29 June 2006
Open democracy
The machinery of the European Union has recovered from the shock of the failed French and Dutch referenda, but not the heart that pumps it, says Aurore Wanlin.
When the French and the Dutch voted against the draft European Union constitution in May 2005, many thought this was an unprecedented crisis...
When the French and the Dutch voted against the draft European Union constitution in May 2005, many thought this was an unprecedented crisis...
Sluggish EU 'Lisbon Agenda' bodes ill for modernisation
01 June 2006
European Affairs
Europe has gotten off to a bad start in 2006 with a fresh battering of the 'Lisbon agenda.' Protectionism is on the rise across the European Union.
Western European politicians should stop exploiting populist fears of low-wage competition
26 January 2006
European Voice
Germany's new Finance Minister, Peer Steinbrück, revived an idea that was first mooted in 2004 by the then chancellor Gerhard Schröder and French presidential hopeful Nicolas Sarkozy: to cut EU regional aid to new member-states that engaged in 'tax dumping'.
At the time, it looked as if these statements were meant...
At the time, it looked as if these statements were meant...
India tilts to the west as the world's new poles emerge
12 January 2006
The Guardian
Nothing is permanent in history, including America's domination of the global economic and political systems. Assuming China and India keep growing at their current rates, the unipolar world of recent years - topped by the US - will be replaced by a multipolar world within a few decades.
Once its "unipolar...
Once its "unipolar...
"Son problème, c'est l'Allemagne"
10 January 2006
Liberation.fr
Le Britannique Charles Grant, directeur du Centre pour la réforme européenne, à Londres, analyse les chances du président français de sortir l'Europe de sa crise institutionnelle.
Jacques Chirac est-il crédible quand il propose de relancer l'Europe ?
Si cela veut dire relancer la Constitution européenne, il n'est pas crédible. Mais personne ne...
Jacques Chirac est-il crédible quand il propose de relancer l'Europe ?
Si cela veut dire relancer la Constitution européenne, il n'est pas crédible. Mais personne ne...
The real crisis for Europe
10 October 2005
Newsweek
So, is Turkey to start membership talks with the European Union? The reception could hardly be more hostile. As the public sees it, the EU is big enough already. Political leaders from France's Nicolas Sarkozy to Germany's Angela Merkel are opposed.
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.
Short Cuts: Reputations: Political song and dance
03 June 2005
The Guardian
"People have been texting saying: don't worry, it's all total politics." These words might have soothed a tearful Javine when she failed to rack up more than 18 points for the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest, but they were not much comfort to the beleaguered French and Dutch "yes"...
European democracy: Where now?
02 June 2005
Open democracy
The rejection by French and Dutch voters of the treaty establishing a European constitution has precipitated one of the deepest crises in the European Union's fifty-year history.