Press
BBC Radio 4: The Briefing Room: Britain's future
28 March 2019
With the route of the UK’s departure from the European Union still unclear, this week David Aaronovitch looks at Britain’s place in the world and assesses what lies ahead in the next stage of negotiations with the EU. Joining David in the Briefing Room are: Ngaire Woods, Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University, Sam Lowe, Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for European Reform, Meg Russell, Director of the Constitutional Unit at University College London and Stefanie Bolzen, London Correspondent of German newspaper, Welt.
The full Meaningful Vote 3 still seems doomed in parliament
28 March 2019
The Finacial Times
John Springford of the Centre for European Reform doubts a customs union plan is sustainable in the long run. “For a lot of Conservative MPs, sovereignty matters and a permanent customs union means we would have the EU determining our tariff and quota policy. It may scrape over the line — but I’m not sure it’s a done deal.”
Brexit: Rolled-over UK free trade deals 'are incomplete'
28 March 2019
BBC News
Sam Lowe, a trade expert from the Centre for European Reform, agreed. "A big part of the problem is that DIT has continually oversold both its capacity to replicate the existing agreements and the nature of those it has managed to replace. "If the government had been a little more honest from the start, then it might not have come as such a surprise to many people and businesses when they fell short," he said.
CER podcast: Europe after Brexit
27 March 2019
Sophia Besch asks Ian Bond to reflect on the CER's 2016 predictions about the effect of Brexit on future EU policy. How do they stand up now, on the eve of the UK’s departure?
Life after Brexit
26 March 2019
The Financial Times
The CER's Sam Lowe on why the real Brexit negotiations haven't even started yet: "In practice, the majority of civil service time and effort will continue to be spent on the arduous process of replacing the 40 or so trade agreements the UK currently has by virtue of its EU membership.The UK will probably, at least initially, continue its quest to find a halfway house that delivers both an independent trade policy and an all-UK approach to Northern Ireland."
The Spectator Podcast: Have chances of a no-deal Brexit increased?
21 March 2019
Charles Grant director of the CER talks to Katy Balls about the probability of Britain leaving the EU without a deal, he argues that it is very unlikely, because both Parliament and the European Council will try to prevent no deal.
Channel 4 News: May's last-ditch dash to Brussels to salvage her Brexit deal
21 March 2019
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform joins Gary Gibbon to discuss the possible next steps in the Brexit negoitations (from 15:50 mins).
Emmanuel Macron and France hang tough as Brexit date looms
21 March 2019
Financial Times
“All through the Brexit process they [the French] have been the hardest of the hard, and on this issue of the extension they are playing the hardest to get,” said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform. “They have got harder on this in the last few weeks because of fears about the European election, and the idea that the Brexit business will pollute the domestic campaign.”
The Zeitgeist: German and European security at a crossroads
21 March 2019
In this episode of The Zeitgeist, Dr Jana Puglierin (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik e.V. ) and Sophia Besch (Centre for European Reform ) join Jeff Rathke to talk about the direction Germany’s security policy is taking. They cover four fundamental questions: What is Germany’s role in European security? Are the changes in German policy adequate for the changing international security environment? How are Germany and France seeking to strengthen their co-operation? And how can the United States and Germany manage their frictions in the interest of a stronger transatlantic relationship?
Bruxelles offre deux mois au Brexit si l'accord de divorce est voté
21 March 2019
Deutsche Welle
Pour Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, chercheuse au Centre for European Reform, il en va de la légitimité même du Parlement Européen."Il y a une certaine inquiétude que si le Royaume-Uni ne participe pas aux élections européennes mais qu'il reste encore membre de l’UE lors de la première session parlementaire, certains remettront en question la validité de la composition du parlement européen. Et cela remettrait donc en cause la légitimité de toutes les décisions futures du Parlement Européen."
Channel 4 News: Brussels exerts control over Brexit
20 March 2019
Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform spoke to Matt Frei about what happens next in the Brexit process.
No deal, no border
17 March 2019
The Business Post
In the event of no deal Brexit, we now know the UK’s plan for the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland: pretend it doesn’t exist.
France Culture: Les convulsions du Brexit et l'Europe (en direct du salon du livre de Paris)
16 March 2019
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform along with Florence Faucher, Vivien Pertusot and Adrien Rodd, spoke on France Culture about the fast approach of Brexit, the divisions in the UK and the future realtions between the EU and the UK.
Deutsche Welle: Stammtisch: One year GroKo - Road to nowhere?
15 March 2019
As Angela Merkel's government reaches its first birthday, Stammtisch asks whether it really has the staying power to make it to the 2021 elections. Centre of European Reform's Christian Odendahl, New York Time's correspondent Melissa Eddy and Berlin Policy Journal's Bettina Vestring also join host Damien McGuinness with the latest on Brexit and get in the mood for St. Patrick's Day in Germany.
Europe without the UK: Liberated or diminished?
15 March 2019
Financial Times
“The signs are that deepening of the single market will continue, with a focus on the digital market. Though integrating services markets would be a big prize, the opposition of national regulators and professional bodies is likely to prevent progress, especially without the UK’s influence. France and Germany, which have not always supported liberalisation, will have proportionately more weight post-Brexit. There are indications, however, that countries that champion the single market have realised that they need to fill the gap left by the UK’s departure.” (Centre for European Reform)
Brexit stands to hurt the rest of the EU, too
14 March 2019
“A no-deal which results in the erection of tariff and non-tariff barriers would be particularly damaging to the EU economy as well as the British economy” Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform, told Stephen Beard.
No-deal trade tariffs will hurt Northern Ireland's economy, but an even bigger hit lurks
14 March 2019
The Telegraph
As Sam Lowe of the Centre for European Reform says: “The Government has accepted that the UK will not have the same level of market access as we do now. Beyond financial services where people have started to realise there’s an issue, there’s legal services, accounting services, professional standards. There’s questions for Northern Irish industry there.”
A liberal-centrist vision for Europe?
14 March 2019
Carnegie Europe
While the liberal-centrists style themselves as a progressive bulwark against populist-nativism, they have yet to develop a united vision for the future of European co-operation.
Twardy brexit z przypadku
14 March 2019
Rzeczpospolita
Theresa May może teraz sama grać na dalsze, nawet roczne, przedłużenie negocjacji. W ten sposób wywarłaby presję na radykalnych zwolenników brexitu, żeby poparli jej wersję umowy i szybko wyszli z UE. Bo w razie przedłużenia negocjacji zwiększyłaby się szansa na pozostanie Wielkiej Brytanii w UE – mówi „Rzeczpospolitej" Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, ekspertka Centre for European Reform.
Three reasons the Irish backstop is actually a good thing
14 March 2019
Prospect
The Westminster debate on the Irish backstop is deeply divisive. This protocol would see Northern Ireland remain de facto in the single market for goods, and the whole UK in a customs union, in the event that another solution is not found.