Press
We have until July to ask Europe for more time. How firm is that deadline?
07 February 2020
Prospect
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said: “My guess: there will not be a formal extension of the transition à la the withdrawal agreement. But there will be a de facto extension of large parts of the transition because in areas like security, research, education, services, investment, aviation etc there won’t be enough time to do deals this year.” We would have to continue paying into the EU budget over any lengthened transition period but perhaps something can be done.
Brexit leaves EU’s orphans to fend for themselves
06 February 2020
Financial Times
“Countries like the Netherlands used to hide behind the UK’s back, hoping it would be very vocal while representing Dutch interests too,” said Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska, of the Centre for European Reform think-tank in Brussels. “It was better to have another member state threatening a veto.”
EU chaos: Brussels ALREADY missing UK after Brexit - 'Countries used to hide behind them!'
06 February 2020
The Daily Express
Agata Gostynksa-Jakubowska, from the Centre for European Reform think-tank, said: “Countries like the Netherlands used to hide behind the UK’s back, hoping it would be very vocal while representing Dutch interests too. “It was better to have another member state threatening a veto.”
Government launches consultation on post-Brexit tariff regime
06 February 2020
City A.M
Trade expert Sam Lowe told City A.M. he welcomed the “sensible approach”.“Focusing on inputs is sensible and nuisance tariffs (below 2.5 per cent) are just irritating,” he said. “The big question for me is how this interacts with the Northern Ireland protocol, where divergence from the EU’s most favoured nation tariff levels makes things slightly more complicated from the rest of the world.”
EU trade chief: ‘Australia-style’ Brexit agreement means no deal
05 February 2020
Politico
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson could still end up without a trade agreement if he pursues an "Australia-style" deal with the EU because such a deal does not exist, European Commissioner for Trade Phil Hogan said.
Boris Johnson's 'Australian-style deal' is 'code for no-deal', EU trade chief says
05 February 2020
The Independent
An "Australian-style" Brexit trade deal suggested by Boris Johnson as an option in talks with the EU is just "code for no-deal", the bloc's trade commissioner has said.
How the EU can survive Brexit
05 February 2020
The New Statesman
There are tensions between Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel – but unless France and Germany can work together the bloc will fragment.
Post Brexit, EU shows ‘little appetite’ for defense co-operation
05 February 2020
Defence News
Centre for European Reform analyst Luigi Scazzieri said in a recent opinion piece for Aspenia Online that while a close defense partnership may emerge at some point, it is unlikely to in the near term. “Boris Johnson’s government appears cautious of seeking a close relationship with the EU, with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab arguing that it had other options,” Scazzieri said.
Brexit turns up the heat on access rules to EU defense coffers
05 February 2020
Defence News
Sophia Besch, a senior research fellow with the Centre for European Reform, said the jury is still out over that assessment. “The big question is whether the European Union can prove that the initiatives improve the operational capabilities,” she said.
Calm down, Brexit trade deal can be done
05 February 2020
Financial Times
As Sam Lowe, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think-tank, puts it, “the negotiation will be over preconditions. There will be some tough issues, but there is nothing fundamental in the mandates to stop a deal. If those key issues get resolved, the trade agreement will pretty much write itself.”
Better off without the British? Foreign Affairs asks the experts
05 February 2020
Foreign Affairs
Brexit will damage the United Kingdom more than the EU, but both will be weaker as a result of it. The United Kingdom, as one of only two EU countries with a genuinely global foreign policy, has played a large role in shaping the EU's response to international crises. It has also been instrumental in strengthening EU law enforcement and domestic security co-operation at a time of increasing threats. Ian Bond, Director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform.
Keynote address by Commissioner Phil Hogan at the Centre for European Reform
04 February 2020
European Commission
Good evening ladies and gentlemen,
First of all let me thank CER for the invitation to speak here today, and let me commend you for the hugely important space you provide for reflection and debate.
We live in a time where balanced analysis has gone out of fashion in many constituencies. Polarised...
First of all let me thank CER for the invitation to speak here today, and let me commend you for the hugely important space you provide for reflection and debate.
We live in a time where balanced analysis has gone out of fashion in many constituencies. Polarised...
Brussels has nothing to fear from UK in talks on level playing field
04 February 2020
The Times
Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, says that Brussels is nervous because it fears that the UK, being so close to the EU, could “entice investment via deregulation that would otherwise go to the EU”. Those companies could then use the UK’s free trade deal to access EU markets.
"Välisilm": Suurbritannia on Euroopa Liidu jaoks nüüd konkurent
03 February 2020
ERR
Mõttekoja Centre for European Reform analüütik Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska sõnul valitseb Suurbritannias ikka veel arusaam, et võib tulla Brüsselisse ja ähvardada oma partnereid, lüüa rusikas lauale ja kasutada jaga ja valitse lähenemist.
You haven’t heard the end of Brexit
03 February 2020
The New York Times
For an agreement to be struck this year, said Sam Lowe at the Centre for European Reform, “the UK will have to move a lot and the E.U. will have to move a little.”
UK companies brace for bumps on Brexit homestretch
02 February 2020
The Wall Street Journal
That would likely mean new barriers to trade are inevitable, said Sam Lowe, a trade-policy expert at the Centre for European Reform, a London think tank. The moment the U.K. gets the right to choose to diverge from the EU on regulations, the EU will treat it as if it already has diverged, he said.
BBC Radio 4: The World This Weekend - Post-Brexit trade policy
02 February 2020
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow a the Centre for European Reform spoke to Mark Mardell about the options that Boris Johnson has for new free trade agreements post-Brexit (from 13 mins).
Britain leaves the European Union, but Brexit is far from over
01 February 2020
Bloomberg
“Many questions remain about the future relationship,” said Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform in London. “We have left the EU, but Brexit lives on.”
Brightblue podcast: Where does Britain go next: The US or the EU?
01 February 2020
This edition of our podcast asks where does Britain go next: The US or the EU? We are joined by Dr Alan Mendoza, Director of the Henry Jackson Society, and Sam Lowe, Researcher at the Centre for European Reform.
Brexit: How did we get here and how could it have played out differently?
01 February 2020
The Independent
Three people with a good claim to have predicted it first are Charles Grant, Denis MacShane and Patrick O’Flynn. Grant, the director of the Centre for European Reform, wrote in March 2005 about what would happen if Britain voted No in the referendum Tony Blair had promised.