Press
Nato at 70: Not 'brain dead', but needs shot in arm
03 December 2019
EU Observer
What a difference a decade makes. Nato's 60th birthday celebration in 2009 was a show of confidence, sprinkled with the stardust of Barack Obama's first official visit to Europe and culminating in a 62-paragraph declaration covering everything from the Arctic to Africa.
Euronews: Future for NATO
02 December 2019
NATO needs to continue to defend itself from pressure from Russia, consider new challenges in cyberspace and space, and become more aware that China poses important challenges in terms of technological sophistication and military deployment, Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European reform tells Euronews.
Nato Leaders' Summit 2019: Treaty organisation faces deep divisions at 70
02 December 2019
The National
Former British ambassador Ian Bond told The National Mr Macron had caused problems within the alliance between Turkey and the US and provoked an “explosion” from Mr Erdogan. He said the French leader was also making increasingly worrying overtures to Russia. In reimagining a new foreign policy for Europe, Mr Macron has caused friction with Berlin and Washington, not least because of his calls for European “strategic autonomy” in defence and foreign policy.
Developing a home-grown European defence equipment market
02 December 2019
Encompass
President Emmanuel Macron’s man in the European Commission will struggle to make headway on developing a home-grown European defence equipment market.
Is a European Security Council a good idea?
02 December 2019
Encompass
The EU is a trade and regulatory superpower, but it has consistently punched below its weight in foreign and security policy.
The SPD’s new left-wing leadership could prove just the jolt Germany needs
01 December 2019
The New Statesman
As the economist Christian Odendahl puts it, Esken and NoWaBo are by international comparison about as hard-left as the IMF, in that they want more of Germany’s vast surplus to be spent on wide-eyed priorities like school, digital and rail improvements. Their proposed minimum wage increase to €12 an hour, below the level currently being proposed in Britain by renowned hardline socialist Boris Johnson, would inject some much-needed demand into the slowing eurozone economy.
BBC Today Programme: UK-US trade agreements
30 November 2019
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform spoke to the Today Programme to discuss how a possible FTA might take shape between the UK and the US (from 52 mins).
Der Mann mit den großen Ohren
30 November 2019
Luxemburger Wort
„Wir neigendazu, uns zu sehr auf dieUnterschiede und Problemezu konzentrieren,obwohl es viele Punkte gab,in denen die Kommissionsich bemüht hat, den Zentral- undOsteuropäern entgegenzukommen“, sagt Agata Gostynska-Jakubowskader Denkfabrik „Centre for European Reform“.
Boris Johnson backs looser state aid rules after Brexit
29 November 2019
Financial Times
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, said: “The EU’s stated position is that even if the UK wants an agreement resembling Canada’s, they will ask for more from the UK on state aid than they did for Canada and Japan because the UK is geographically closer and big.” He added that the starting point of any negotiation with the EU would be a demand for dynamic alignment with Brussels’ state aid rules, something that was likely to be incompatible with the Conservatives’ new approach.
Boris Johnson rose to power thanks to Theresa May’s Brexit errors; now he’s replicating them
29 November 2019
Global Government Forum
Johnson’s government has refused to publish an impact assessment of its plans. But research by think tank the Centre for European Reform suggests that in financial services alone, under this scenario UK businesses – which currently export £23.6bn (US$30.5bn) to the EU – could see their export revenues fall by 59%.
Another Franco-German plan
28 November 2019
Financial Times
Luigi Scazzieri at the Centre for European Reform dissects how a Franco-German proposal for a “European Security Council” could end up backfiring: “A move to formalise co-operation between a select few member states in a grand-sounding European Security Council risks being highly divisive, as there is a risk that other member states may interpret it as a move to make Europe more independent of the US — especially in the context of Macron’s recent comments on the “brain death” of NATO.”
Johnson's future Brexit plan would be almost as disruptive as no deal
28 November 2019
Prospect
A "super Canada plus" agreement would still present businesses with a cliff edge.
Letters: Free trade future
27 November 2019
The Telegraph
SIR – Through Brexit and the election, trade has come to the forefront of the national conversation. As trade professionals we welcome public debate but fear the supplanting of fact with rhetoric.
Jeremy Corbyn claims dossier shows NHS at risk from US trade deal
27 November 2019
Financial Times
“The US clearly wants to discuss issues that are particularly controversial such as drug pricing,” said Sam Lowe, a trade specialist at the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank. “But the UK is not yet prepared to concede on these issues.”
What the four mentions of the NHS in Jeremy Corbyn’s dossier really mean
27 November 2019
The Sun
Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, told us: "What this boils down to is largely what we knew already - the US is asking us for things. "Will the US want to discuss medicine prices? Absolutely, they will."Will the UK concede to their demands? We don't know, but the Government is saying no. "This tells us what is being discussed, but not the outcome."
Boris Johnson's 'arbitrary' Brexit deadline will damage UK economy, say trade experts
27 November 2019
The Telegraph
Sam Lowe of the Centre for European Reform, who is among the signatories, has said that clinching such a deal is possible but only by accepting an "off the shelf" deal from Europe that for many businesses will mean the same paperwork and restrictions as a "no deal" Brexit.
'That's completely wrong': Michael Gove falsely claims EU has no single market for services
26 November 2019
The Independent
Sam Lowe, of the Centre for European Reform think-tank, echoed the verdict, saying: “The single market in services is not as developed as the single market in goods, but it very much does exist.”
New Brexit deadline: But but but …
25 November 2019
Politico London Playbook
Trade experts say that if Johnson sticks to his plan of a trade deal removing tariffs but little else, he may end up needing more time. “There will still need to be an extension of the status quo for a while longer, whether it’s called a transition extension or not, because otherwise when you move from status quo to free trade agreement, you create an overnight cliff-edge scenario similar to no deal,” the Centre for European Reform’s Sam Lowe tells Playbook.
Boris Johnson's 'diplomatic amateurism' will lead to a no-deal Brexit, warns ex-ambassador Sir Ivan Rogers
25 November 2019
The Telegraph
“If Mr Johnson wants something 'soft' then that does get complicated,” said Sam Lowe of the Centre for European Reform. “But so long as we’re talking about an FTA, then we are talking about a hard Brexit not far removed from no deal.”
Tory manifesto leaves door open to no-deal Brexit
24 November 2019
Financial Times
However, trade analysts remain sceptical. Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think-tank, said that negotiating free trade deals while finalising the EU relationship would be “incredibly difficult”, as other countries would want clarity on that key relationship first. “A trade agreement with US is tricky regardless,” said Mr Lowe, thanks to the relative unpopularity in the UK of US president Donald Trump, and the typically aggressive US approach to trade talks.