Press
Brexit faces problems at the Northern Irish border
17 June 2021
The Economist
A model constructed by John Springford of the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank with offices in both London and Brussels, concludes that goods trade is 11% lower than it would otherwise have been, on top of an earlier 10% fall since the referendum.
Wind turbine clash adds to UK-EU post-Brexit tensions
17 June 2021
The Guardian
Sam Lowe, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform think-tank, and a former member of the Department for International Trade’s strategic trade advisory group, said: “Local content requirements are prohibited not just under the EU-UK trade and co-operation agreement, but also the UK’s WTO commitments.
Trade Talks Podcast: Global Britain: How's that going then?
17 June 2021
Sam Lowe spoke on the latest Trade Talks podast about how to understand the spat concerning Brexit’s Northern Ireland Protocol, and the UK's new trade deal with Australia.
Australia trade deal will deliver minimal benefit to UK economy and poses risks for farmers, say experts
16 June 2021
The Independent
Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, tweeted that “trade deals don’t do very much for aggregate GDP either positively or negatively” because the main benefits come from reducing tariffs, which are already quite low.
Judy Asks: Will distrust among EU leaders fail Ukraine?
16 June 2021
Carnegie Europe
EU leaders exaggerated their unity at the start of this crisis. They should not now overstate their differences or suspect each other’s motives.
Biden and Putin conclude high-stakes diplomacy at Geneva summit
16 June 2021
CNBC
“This is an attempt to stabilize the situation,” Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform, told CNBC Wednesday. “The slogan from the Americans has been that they want predictability and stability in the relationship and it has been on a downward spiral, things have been getting worse.”
Google's rare surrender on ads risks more antitrust pursuers
16 June 2021
Bloomberg
“Obtaining a settlement is likely to be a roadmap for other regulators,” said Zach Meyers, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, a London-based think tank.
Sky News: Why the Australia trade deal matters
15 June 2021
Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the CER spoke to Sam Coates about why the Australia trade deal matters (from 2mins 20).
The UK-Australia trade deal has been painted as both a travesty and a triumph for Britain – it’s neither
15 June 2021
iNews
This deal does not give us any insight into whether the UK will be able to conclude tougher negotiations with the US, India and South American countries.
‘A new dawn’: Australia and Britain agree on historic trade deal
15 June 2021
The Sydney Morning Herald
Centre for European Reform trade expert Sam Lowe said he was surprised the UK agreed to eventually eliminate agricultural tariffs.
“When it comes to tariffs, we have a constituency-based electoral system which sees farmers heavily concentrated in Conservative backyards. The fact we are discussing duty free and quota-free trade is something that will have shocked everyone.”
“When it comes to tariffs, we have a constituency-based electoral system which sees farmers heavily concentrated in Conservative backyards. The fact we are discussing duty free and quota-free trade is something that will have shocked everyone.”
UK-Australia trade deal could complicate post-Brexit solution in Northern Ireland, officials fear
15 June 2021
Politico
“While it was totally possible for the U.K. to do a deal with Australia and not jeopardize its ability to enter into a deep veterinary agreement with the EU, it will be interesting to see whether the U.K. chooses to diverge from EU approaches anyway so as to make it more difficult for this or a future government to reintegrate with the EU. A ratchet, of sorts,” said Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform.
Deutsche Welle: NATO summit
14 June 2021
Sophia Besch, senior research fellow a the CER spoke to Deutsche Welle about the NATO summit.
Euronews: NATO statement on China goes 'much further' than prior language, expert says
14 June 2021
"The language on China certainly goes much further than anything NATO has said before,” Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the think-tank the Centre for European Reform, told Euronews.
Relations with Russia at ‘lowest point’ in many years, says NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg
14 June 2021
The Parliament Magazine
Ian Bond, Centre for European Reform director of foreign policy, gave his assessment of the summit, saying, “Biden is America’s most Atlanticist president since Bill Clinton. Europe and the US will not see eye-to-eye on everything, but they should not waste this chance to strengthen their partnership.”
NATO statement on China goes 'much further' than prior language, expert says
14 June 2021
Euronews
"The language on China certainly goes much further than anything NATO has said before,” Ian Bond, Director of Foreign Policy at the think tank the Centre for European Reform, told Euronews. “I think this does reflect an increasing realisation that China is developing in ways that we hadn’t hoped for and perhaps we didn’t expect a few years ago when the talk was of China becoming a responsible stakeholder in the international system.”
Is Europe’s latest payments project doomed to fail?
14 June 2021
Financial Times
“Once participating banks start to go into the nitty-gritty of designing the EPI, the interests of those banks will start to diverge,” warned Zach Meyers at the Centre for European Reform think-tank.
CER podcast: Joe Biden's bridge-building European tour
11 June 2021
Ian Bond speaks to Rosa Balfour and Andrea Kendall-Taylor about the prospects for the transatlantic relationship under the Biden administration.
Import of hormone-treated beef 'not happening' says Trade Minister, Liz Truss
11 June 2021
ITV News
"If the UK government is making hormone-treated beef a red line in negotiations with Australia, the US and other trade partners, this will provide some protection for British cattle farmers, who are not allowed to give their own animals hormones," said John Springford, from the Centre for European Reform.
What’s happening on tax at the G7 leaders’ summit?
11 June 2021
Independent (Ireland)
Zach Meyers, a research fellow with the Centre for European Reform think-tank, said the EU’s moves “are unlikely to work and could even dissuade countries from agreeing to the OECD package”.
EU tries to loosen Brexit deadlock with colour-coded plan for Swiss-style deal
10 June 2021
The Guardian
Sam Lowe, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, said the obvious solution was a Swiss-style deal for Northern Ireland “even on a temporary basis” to allow the UK government to diverge in the future for the sake of a trade deal with another country, such as the US.