Press

Ireland turns corner from crisis to recovery

Simon Tilford
17 October 2013
Deutsche Welle
"Investors, for various reasons, believe that Ireland will grow; that Ireland is going to be able to service its debts. They don't believe that that's the case with Portugal or Greece and they have doubts with one or two other countries," Simon Tilford of the CER, told DW.

Xenophobes of the world, unite? French, Dutch far-right weigh alliance

17 October 2013
The Christian Science Monitor
"It's difficult for a group of nationalists to come together on an internationalist platform," says Hugo Brady, senior research fellow at the CER. "The minute they start doing that kind of stuff, they start resembling the mainstream parties that they claim to despise."

The Kremlin uses bully-boy tactics to keep other countries in the fold

17 October 2013
The New Statesman
Putin and his ministers were uncharacteristically polite about Barack Obama, welcoming co-operation with him over Syria’s chemical weapons.

EU needs an overhaul

17 October 2013
European Voice
All across Europe, people are fed up with the European Union. The eurozone's difficulties explain much of the disenchantment.

Does Europe want immigrants?

Hugo Brady, Judy Dempsey
16 October 2013
Carnegie Europe
Following recent boat disasters in the Mediterranean and against the backdrop of right-wing, anti-immigration sentiments in Europe, our experts discuss the issues surrounding immigration in Europe.

Pascal Lamy should lead European Commission, says Delors

Heather Grabbe, Stefan Lehne
15 October 2013
EurActiv
In a report published yesterday (14 October), the Centre for European Reform said that the proposal to put forward 'faces' for European elections to improve democratic legitimacy was ill-fated.

Brussels disputes UK claims of 'benefit tourism'

14 October 2013
Financial Times
John Springford, of the CER said the government’s 'benefits tourism' claims were a canard. "Contrary to popular opinion, EU immigrants are far less likely to take up benefits than the British population...  the great majority of EU immigrants come to Britain to work," he said.

It's time for European governments to embrace a real reform agenda for the EU

14 October 2013
LSE blog
Hugo Brady writes that rather than attempting to negotiate the re-nationalisation of EU powers to Westminster, he and other European leaders should consider some practical, feasible reforms that the Union can begin to implement immediately.

Ireland: Back on the market

13 October 2013
Financial Times
"Berlin and Brussels desperately need to show that the tough economic medicine they have been prescribing during the eurozone sovereign debt crisis works and Ireland is their best chance of a success story," says Hugo Brady, an analyst at the CER think-tank.

Setting pace, Ireland predicts December exit from bailout

Simon Tilford
13 October 2013
The New York Times
"If Ireland can’t make the strategy a success, it’s difficult to see who can in the eurozone," said Simon Tilford, deputy director of the CER. "It’s a highly flexible, export-led economy with high levels of social cohesion and good governance."

Jobs not 'benefit tourism' the reason migrants move around EU

11 October 2013
The Irish Times
The report echoes a study published this month by the CER which finds that EU immigrants are net contributors to the UK treasury and far less likely to take up welfare benefits than the British population, though it found immigration from other member-states is forcing up housing costs.

Eurozone fails to cheer recovery

Paul de Grauwe, George Magnus, Holger Schmieding
10 October 2013
Financial Times
"What is surprising is that [instead of protecting debtor nations] the European Commission has assumed the role of agent of the creditor nations in the eurozone, pushing austerity as the instrument to safeguard the interests of the creditor nations," says Paul de Grauwe, in a recent CER study.

Video interview on 'Is Russia's foreign policy changing?'

Charles Grant, Fyodor Lukyanov
09 October 2013
Charles Grant interviewed Fyodor Lukyanov, editor of Russia in Global Affairs and chairman of the Council for Foreign and Defence Policy, Moscow

Letters: Add Germany to EU services push

09 October 2013
Financial Times
Sir, Guntram Wolff is right to propose liberalisation of Germany’s sclerotic services sector ('Germany needs a service sector to match its makers', October 7).

Video interview on 'How to build a modern European Union'

09 October 2013
Charles Grant discusses his latest CER report which discusses the fact that despite its many achievements, the EU’s institutions and policies are badly in need of an overhaul.

After Lampedusa, EU ponders migration, finds little cash

09 October 2013
The Wall Street Journal
The debate in the aftermath of the Lampedusa tragedy leaves little doubt that the EU is far from having a harmonized migration policy, Hugo Brady of the CER says. "We're 10, 15 years away", he reckons.

Schengen 2018

08 October 2013
E!Sharp
SOZOPOL, July 20, 2018 1.15pm BST(Reuters) The future of the EU's 28-country Schengen area looked uncertain last night as members quarrelled over whether to admit Croatia to the club.

Italy calls for increased EU aid to deal with migrant issue

04 October 2013
Financial Times
Hugo Brady, of the CER, said the EU needed to do more to establish "mobility partnerships" with north African countries to try and handle migration flows to Europe. "Thus far there has only been one such partnership but more are needed that set the conditions for migration." he said.

Polish minister learning French amid speculation on EU top jobs

03 October 2013
EU Observer
Charles Grant, director of the CER, noted that Sikorski and Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt are both "extremely well qualified" to replace Ashton. But he warned that they tend to speak too "frankly" for some EU countries' tastes.

Russia redraws lines of diplomacy

03 October 2013
The New York Times
"There is no doubt that the Russians regard themselves as having pulled off quite a victory," said Ian Bond, a foreign policy specialist with the CER in London. "We have become quite used to a negative international agenda" from Moscow, he said.