Press
Brexit: UK immigration system found to contribute to labour shortages
27 February 2023
EurActiv
The labour market for low-skilled EU workers is “much tighter” now than before the Brexit deal was signed in December 2020, John Springford, Deputy Director of the Centre for European Reform (CER), told EURACTIV.Springford co-authored a CER study, published in January, which found that Brexit had led to a loss of 460,000 EU workers compared to 2019, after taking the COVID-19 pandemic into account.“The large shortfall of non-UK workers is mostly in sectors that disproportionately employ less-skilled workers”, the study reads.
The Protocol deal is a win for Sunak – and the EU
27 February 2023
The Spectator
Soon after Boris Johnson struck a deal with the EU in October 2019 on the Withdrawal Agreement, including the Northern Ireland protocol, the British government demanded changes to the Protocol.
CER podcast: One year of war in Ukraine
24 February 2023
In this week’s episode of the CER podcast Ian Bond discusses the Ukraine-Russia war with Sir Richard Shireff & Dr Olesya Khromeychuk
After a year of Russia's war on Ukraine, has the West learned the right lessons?
24 February 2023
Encompass
There’s been a lot of talk in the last year about the Russian army’s inability to learn from its disastrous performance in Ukraine.
Ukraine war: Europe has turned a crisis into an opportunity, and it’s better off for it
23 February 2023
iNews
“The main impact has been to create more unity,” says Charles Grant, director of the London-based Centre for European Reform think-tank.“It’s been positive for European integration and it’s created some momentum towards doing more things together than was feasible before the war.”
How do we cure long-term sickness and revive our shrinking workforce?
22 February 2023
The Times
He [Jeremy Hunt] cannot do much about the loss of European Union workers, estimated by the Centre for European Reform to be 330,000, but he will hope to address the loss of older workers, apparently lured away from the labour market and into early retirement.
Brexit and the Australia deal is bad for British farming so why didn't any Ministers intervene?
22 February 2023
The Yorkshire Post
Recent studies by the Centre for European Reform state that the UK's GDP has already fallen by 5.5 per cent due to Brexit, amounting to an annual loss of tax revenue of £40bn, and the immigration policy has caused a shortfall of 330,000 workers.
Finland should be ready to join NATO, with or without Sweden
22 February 2023
Euronews
If Turkey is willing to ratify Finland’s NATO membership, there is little reason for Helsinki to wait for Stockholm.
Hungary, Poland and the rule of law: Follow the money
21 February 2023
Encompass
Since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine a year ago, economic sanctions have been at the forefront of EU policy making.
5 big Brexit promises - and what we got instead
20 February 2023
The Independent
A joint report by the UK in a Changing Europe and the Centre for European Reform think tanks found the ending of free movement is “contributing significantly” to current labour shortages. The study found the low-skilled sectors – including hospitality, retail, construction and transportation – had been badly hit by the loss of EU workers after Brexit.
Two-thirds of public think Brexit has hurt UK economy, poll finds
19 February 2023
The Independent
In December, the Centre for European Reform (CER) found that Brexit had cost the UK a staggering £33bn in lost trade, investment and growth. The CER also estimated the tax loss from Brexit to be around £40bn.
The authoritarian moment
18 February 2023
The New European
Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform, says Putin can afford to ignore these distant protests.“Putin cares about what happens in Moscow and St Petersburg… everywhere else you can deal with it through a combination of bribery and coercion,” he said. “When things start bubbling in Moscow and St Petersburg, they are ruthlessly suppressed… I don’t think demonstrations by soldiers’ mothers in the periphery make much difference.”
El coste del "error colosal" del divorcio británico de la UE: pérdidas de 120.000 millones anuales y 330.000 empleos menos
18 February 2023
Publico
Desde otros centros de investigación, como el Centre for European Reform (CER), un think tank europeísta y próximo desde sus orígenes al laborismo británico, y el UK in Changing Europe, se hacen eco de una reducción de 330.000 trabajadores -460.000 de origen europeo menos, frente a los 130.000 de otras nacionalidades que se ha sumado al mercado de trabajo- desde la firma del divorcio. Una "pérdida neta" de alrededor del 1% de la fuerza laboral británica.
Spectator Podcast: Will the DUP accept Sunak’s deal?
17 February 2023
As it looks like the government is about to agree a new deal with the European Union on the Northern Ireland Protocol, Rishi Sunak is in Belfast today meeting with the DUP. Will they accept a compromise?
Max Jeffery speaks to Isabel Hardman and Charles Grant, director of the Centre for...
Max Jeffery speaks to Isabel Hardman and Charles Grant, director of the Centre for...
When EU fiscal rules meet industrial policy
16 February 2023
EurActiv
But how would the UK have fared had it never left the European Union? It’s impossible to say for sure as we cannot let history run twice, but John Springford of the Centre for European Reform is trying to come as close as possible to re-running history by using a ‘doppelgänger’ method.
La compétitivité ne s’obtient pas en déversant des montagnes de cash
16 February 2023
L'AGEFI Hebdo
Lors du dernier Conseil européen, les 27 ont peiné à s’entendre sur le plan industriel proposé par Bruxelles.
First Brexit, then Bregret. Is it too soon for Breconciliation?
16 February 2023
The Washington Post
Boris Johnson in 2018 imagined that escaping the “stockade” of EU regulation would free up at least 4% of gross domestic product; five years on, John Springford of the Centre for European Reform estimates the UK economy is 5.5% smaller than without Brexit, and collects 40 billion pounds ($48 billion) less in yearly tax revenue.
BBC World Business Report: New EU sanctions for Russia?
15 February 2023
Zach Meyers, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform BBC World Business report about the effectiveness of sanctions against Russia (from 2.00 mins).
Should Rishi Sunak relax immigration rules as Britain hit by skills shortage?
15 February 2023
The Daily Express
The research by the UK in a Changing Europe and the Centre for European Reform think-tanks show that post-Brexit the UK economy is suffering from labour shortages in lower-skilled sectors, including logistics, construction and hospitality, with the lack of free movement “contributing significantly” to this.
Europe scrambles to reclaim its industrial edge
15 February 2023
Cipher News
“The EU industry is notoriously slow to take up new technologies and innovations,” said Zach Meyers, a senior research fellow specializing in competition policy at the Centre for European Reform, a European think-tank.