Press
Judy Asks: Can Europe become stronger after the coronavirus pandemic?
26 March 2020
Carnegie Europe
The EU’s initial response to the crisis was haphazard, with member states taking center stage. But the EU could emerge stronger from this pandemic if it learns from its past mistakes.
Europe's leaders ditch austerity and fight pandemic with cash
25 March 2020
The New York Times
“A monumental crisis like this creates the political space to challenge whatever the thinking was before,” said Christian Odendahl, the Berlin-based chief economist at the Centre for European Reform.
CER podcast: The EU must fight COVID-19 on the home front and abroad
25 March 2020
EU solidarity went missing when the COVID-19 pandemic started, feeding eurosceptic narratives. The Union is now getting its act together internally.
Germany fires fiscal fusillade but markets roiled by economic anxiety
24 March 2020
The Australian Financial Review
"Hawkish northern eurozone members, which have so far strongly opposed the idea of any risk sharing in the eurozone members, should understand that without taking bold steps the entire eurozone may be endangered," said Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, in a paper published on Monday.
The Londoner: Alastair Campbell warns Boris Johnson - smarten up your act
23 March 2020
Evening Standard
As customers bemoaned the lack of pasta in Waitrose Holloway Road, they saw a tall lady stacking shelves. It was CEO Sharon White, noticed punter Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform. “She was talking to customers and mucking in with colleagues. There was no press or PR.” Proof that this crisis can bring out the best in business.
Europe is losing the battle to unite its military efforts
23 March 2020
European CEO
Sophia Besch, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, points out that these have had limited success: member-states are dodging the policies by invoking Article 346, which allows governments to protect issues relating to their security, meaning they have to comply when it comes to maintenance and repair but not in terms of major military equipment contracts.
EU's institutional framework regarding defence matters
20 March 2020
European Parliament
The new initiatives and developments in the EU’s institutional defence architecture in recent years have the potential to make the Union a more capable defence actor.
The British approach and international consensus
19 March 2020
Aspenia Online
The UK’s initial response to the coronavirus emergency appeared effective. Despite its high degree of interconnectedness with the global economy, the number of cases remained low in February.
Covid-19 is delaying Brexit negotiations
19 March 2020
The Economist
Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank, notes that EU minds are also elsewhere, as they confront the serious risks to the bloc’s economy and the potential for destabilisation. “The chances of getting a deal fixed in time are diminishing,” he notes. “An extension is more likely.”
Bold policies needed to counter the coronavirus recession
18 March 2020
VoxEU
The 2008 financial crisis was a global economic catastrophe. Millions of people lost their jobs, their homes, their savings or their businesses as banks collapsed and creditdried up.
CER podcast: Western leaders should talk to Putin, but not be taken in by him
18 March 2020
Western leaders must know their facts before they talk to Putin, and take a firm line on unacceptable actions.
Tok FM: Zamknięcie granic państw członkowskich UE ogranicza swobodne funkcjonowanie rynku
18 March 2020
Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform talked to TOK FM about the EU’s response to covid-19 and yesterday’s leaders’ video-conference.
Building 'European champions': An effective way to fend off Chinese competition?
17 March 2020
EUBulletin
In February, Germany, France, Italy and Poland proposed a review of EU competition policy, demanding that the European Commission “introduce more justified and reasonable flexibility” to its decisions about mergers between European companies, to “take better account of third countries’ state intervention”.
A word of advice to Western leaders: Talk to Putin but don’t let him gaslight you
17 March 2020
Euronews
Six years after Russia illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine and fell under Western sanctions, some Western leaders are getting restless.
European Commission set to approve 30-day EU travel ban to fight coronavirus
16 March 2020
The Telegraph
Charles Grant, the director of the Centre for European Reform think-tank described the proposals as "window-dressing ... to cover up the embarrassment of member states closing their borders to each other".
Europe mulls shutting external borders in fight against coronavirus
16 March 2020
Reuters
Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform think-tank, agreed. He described the proposals as “window-dressing ... to cover up the embarrassment of member-states closing their borders to each other.”“I don’t see the potential benefits,” he said.
EU leaders divided on how to protect economies after coronavirus
14 March 2020
The Guardian
The coronavirus fallout is likely to be uneven. “The producers of toilet paper don’t have a recession at all, and the restaurants and hotels have a very deep one,” said Christian Odendahl, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform, based in Berlin. Manufacturers, he said, have more hope of a “V-shaped” recovery – that is, an economic bounce-back as rapid as the descent – because they will benefit from pent-up demand.
Boris Johnson pressed to move Brexit deadline amid Coronavirus threat
14 March 2020
The New York Times
“In a rational world, the UK would ask for an extension in June even if coronavirus wasn’t happening,” said John Springford, the deputy director of the Centre for European Reform, a London-based think-tank.“The pandemic makes it even more pressing,” Mr Springford said, “because the British state will not have the personnel needed to enact the sweeping changes necessary to leave the single market.”
Coronavirus is Boris Johnson's worst nightmare
14 March 2020
CNN
"Now that future relationship talks are being interrupted, it is inevitable that both sides will have to start considering possible extensions," says Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska at the Centre for European Reform, based in Brussels.However, she adds: "The request should come from the British government and, obviously, an extension wouldn't come without costs for the UK. Questions, including the financial contributions, will have to be taken. There is no such thing as a free lunch."
500 Euro, um das Nötigste abzufedern
13 March 2020
Die Zeit
Eltern, Selbständige, Minijobber: Die Eindämmung des Virus wird zu finanziellen Engpässen führen. Die Lösung wäre ein vorläufiges Corona-Geld für jeden Bundesbürger.