Britain & EU member-states
Brexit maze: The role of EU institutions in the negotiations
05 July 2017
Theresa May will be reluctant to openly discuss the difficult choices ahead of the UK. Citizens and business should look to the EU institutions for information about their future post-Brexit.
Britain prepares for a softer Brexit
27 June 2017
Britain’s general election has increased the chances of a ‘softer’ Brexit. But what would a softer Brexit look like? And could it include a customs union with the EU?
Hard Brexit, soft data: How to keep Britain plugged into EU databases
23 June 2017
Retaining full access to EU databases fighting crime and terrorism will not be easy for Britain. Any deal will require a role for the European Court of Justice and keeping EU privacy laws.
How should the EU react to Britain's general election?
15 June 2017
The EU-27 can force Britain's politicians to acknowledge Brexit’s trade-offs, by offering the British four options from which it must choose.
What does the election result mean for Brexit?
09 June 2017
Brexit barely figured in the UK's general election, but the result means that the country might yet have an election fought explicitly on the issue.
Bulletin Issue 114 - June/July 2017
24 May 2017
- Why no deal would be much worse than a bad deal, John Springford, Simon Tilford
- Macron, Merkel and the future of the euro, Charles Grant
- Europe's forgotten refugee crisis, Camino Mortera-Martinez
Why no deal would be much worse than a bad deal
24 May 2017
Theresa May and several of her ministers have claimed that no Brexit deal would be better than a poor deal. They are wrong.
A flexible EU: A new beginning or the beginning of the end?
18 May 2017
The EU needs to become more flexible if it is to tackle current and future challenges effectively. But it should do so transparently, and remain inclusive.
Good cop, bad cop: How to keep Britain inside Europol
16 May 2017
A post-Brexit deal on Europol should be relatively easy to negotiate. The UK could retain a special status, but the British government will need to make some concessions.
A prime minister unshackled
09 May 2017
Checks on prime ministerial power are weak in Britain – and Theresa May’s massive parliamentary majority after the general election will weaken them further. In the context of Brexit, this is dangerous.
How will Germany respond to Emmanuel Macron?
08 May 2017
Germany is divided on how to respond to Macron: some are wary of a new bargain to revive the Franco-German alliance, others are enthusiastic.
The British and their exceptionalism
03 May 2017
Few countries have allowed their sense of exceptionalism to damage their interests in the way Britain is doing. British overconfidence is unjustified and will come at a heavy price.
Brexiting Swiss-style: The best possible UK-EU trade deal
24 April 2017
The softest form of hard Brexit that is plausible – given the red lines of the 27 and Britain – is something like Switzerland's deal with the EU.
Bulletin Issue 113 - April/May 2017
20 March 2017
- The meaning of Macron, Charles Grant
- Can Martin Schulz beat Angela Merkel?, Christian Odendahl
- Playing defence, Sophia Besch
The meaning of Macron
20 March 2017
The surge of support for Emmanuel Macron in France shows that liberal, pro-EU centrists may yet have a future in European politics. This would be good for the EU.
Can Martin Schulz beat Angela Merkel?
20 March 2017
A chancellor Schulz would be good news for the eurozone economy. But he would not differ much from Merkel on Brexit.
Playing defence
20 March 2017
The UK’s contributions to European defence will play a role in Brexit negotiations. But both sides should keep the long-term objective of close co-operation in mind.
Berlin to the rescue? A closer look at Germany's position on Brexit
17 March 2017
Brexiters hope that Berlin will adopt an accommodating stance in the forthcoming negotiations because of Germany's economic and security interests. Such hopes are misplaced.
Are the scenarios in Juncker’s White Paper on the future of the EU realistic?
03 March 2017
On Wednesday, the European Commission presented its ‘White Paper on the future of Europe’, ahead of the Treaty of Rome’s 60th anniversary celebrations on March 25th.
Trump, trade and the EU: Two wrongs don't make a right
23 February 2017
The US will not gain by resorting to protectionism. If it does so, the EU should stay calm, listen when US criticism is justified, and make its first priority the defence of the WTO process and the rule of law.