Press
CER podcast: Does the EU need a common arms export policy?
17 July 2019
Sophia Besch and Beth Oppenheim discuss the state of the EU's arms export regime, and whether the Union needs a genuinely common and enforceable policy.
Johnson ‘closing off escape routes’ on road to no-deal Brexit
16 July 2019
Fiancial Times
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said Mr Johnson — the frontrunner — could have chosen a strategy of “putting lipstick” on Theresa May’s deal and trying to ram it through parliament in the autumn.
A Boris Johnson declaration of no deal?
16 July 2019
Financial Times
To get a sense of how grim things appear, it’s worth looking at this Twitter thread by Charles Grant, head of the Centre for European Reform. He has been holding talks with EU officials and yesterday spelled out what the four routes to a revised Brexit deal could be.
Tories back Johnson despite mistakes
16 July 2019
The Guardian
Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform says the EU will not blink on renegotiation. It could, however, offer a new political declaration on the future relationship, confirm it does not want the backstop to be permanent, and offer a longer transition – though none of those are sure to make a difference in Westminster.
European divisions on display as Ursula von der Leyen wins narrow approval for EU's top job
16 July 2019
The Washington Post
“European elections delivered a much more fragmented Parliament,” said Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska, an expert on European politics at the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank. “What is going to be pretty prominent is that the euroskeptics who failed to obtain a blocking minority in the European Parliament will try to expose the vulnerabilities of this pro-European coalition.”
Chief trade negotiator: UK had little influence before Brexit vote
15 July 2019
Sky News
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform and a member of the government's Strategic Trade Advisory Group, told Sky News that trade policy remained "in a state of flux" and that he was "not sure it's true" to say that Britain's influence had grown.Mr Lowe said: "The UK right now is not viewed as a bastion of free trade. Brexit is viewed as protectionism - we're putting up barriers to trade with our biggest market. There's some hope that the UK might move into this role in the future, but to be honest, until the relationship with the EU is settled, people are just holding their breath."
Europe can’t afford to turn away from London
15 July 2019
City A.M
Today, the EU’s former director-general for financial stability, financial services and capital markets union Sir Jonathan Faull reignites the debate and lays down a challenge to authorities on both sides of the channel.In a new report for the Centre for European Reform, Faull and top City lawyer Simon Gleeson question how the EU can push ahead with its highly-prized (but stalled) ambition of creating a dynamic EU-wide capital market without continued access to the City of London.
Ursula von der Leyen isn't perfect, but she's better than the alternative
15 July 2019
Foreign Policy
Opposing the compromise candidate for EU commission president will further empower populists and Euroskeptics.
Brexit effect? Europe's populists back away from calls to leave the union
14 July 2019
NBC News
“Populists are very good at reading public opinion,” said Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, a senior research fellow at the Center for European Reform, a think tank in Brussels.
Transatlantic divergence in the Middle East
11 July 2019
E!Sharp
From Libya to Iran, Donald Trump has re-orientated US policy in the Middle East, opening a rift with Europe.
Peston Live ITV: Geek of the week
10 July 2019
What would the EU have made of what Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt said about Brexit in the ITV debate? Our Geek Of The Week Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska of the Centre for European Reform scored it 7:1 on the ‘unicorn’ scale to Boris Johnson.
Johnson risks Whitehall backlash over ambassador’s downfall
10 July 2019
The Financial Times
Ian Bond, a former UK ambassador who is now foreign policy director at the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank, said: “The implication of comments made by Boris Johnson is that civil servants and diplomats will have to shape their reporting and prejudices if he gets to Number 10. What he is saying is: ‘If we don’t like your reporting or your advice, we won’t stand by you’.”
Boris Johnson and Donald Trump's UK-US trade deal ‘will never happen’, Cabinet Minister warns
10 July 2019
The Huffington Post
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think tank, said: “If the UK wants to quickly conclude a trade agreement with the US it will need to accept nearly all of the US’s demands.“This is particularly true of agriculture and food hygiene issues, which the US views as a key aggressive interest.
Greece's experiment with populism holds lessons for Europe
09 July 2019
The New York Times
Greece represented a special, wrenching case, but its experience showed that, especially for small countries, if you are in the eurozone, “you’re not free to run a radical financial policy,” said Charles Grant, the director of the Centre for European Reform. “The combination of EU rules and the financial markets forced a kind of orthodoxy on Greece, and will probably work similarly with Italy.”
Reparto de altos cargos en la UE: el regreso del líder reacio
08 July 2019
El Pais
Toda cumbre europea digna de ese nombre sigue una coreografía muy precisa.
Merkel pierde el control de Europa
07 July 2019
El Pais
A pesar de todo, hay quien duda que el final de Merkel esté cerca. "La próxima semana será crucial para el futuro de Von der Leyen pero, pase lo que pase, no creo que se pueda colocar a Merkel entre las perdedoras de la última cumbre", señala Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, analista del Centre for European Reform.
The Spectator Podcast: Who are Europe's new leaders?
06 July 2019
With Henry Newman, Director of Open Europe, and Charles Grant, Director of the Centre for European Reform. Presented by Katy Balls.
CER podcast: EU top jobs
05 July 2019
Sophia Besch talks to Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska about the EU’s top jobs reshuffle. They discuss the candidates, Europe's winners and losers, and what happens next.
Boris Johnson says he’s prepared for a no-deal Brexit. Critics say he’s reckless
05 July 2019
The Washington Post
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, said Johnson’s strategy could be to “put lipstick on the pig” — getting the EU to agree to minor adjustments to the existing deal but playing it up as a rewrite. “In practice it will be very similar to the previous deal,” Grant anticipated.
Dealing with the Saudis
29 June 2019
The Week
“The Saudi-led incursion into Yemen is arguably the greatest humanitarian catastrophe in recent years,” said Beth Oppenheim in The Independent. Since 2015, when war broke out between Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and government forces supported by a Saudi-led coalition, it has left more than 100,000 people dead (including 11,000 civilians), and 22 million in need of humanitarian aid. It has also caused the worst cholera outbreak in history.