Single market, competition & trade
The cost of Brexit: December 2021
10 March 2022
By December 2021, leaving the single market and customs union had reduced UK goods trade by 14.9 per cent. And new analysis shows that UK exports have taken a larger hit than imports.
How the world has changed in 25 years: Annual report 2021
07 February 2022
The CER has been in business for about a quarter of a century – we published our first pamphlets in 1996 and opened our London office in 1998.
Ditchley conference report: The politics of climate change
02 February 2022
Climate change is as much a political problem as a technological one, and the CER's annual economics conference focused on ways to overcome inertia, denial and myopia.
Why big business may learn to love EU competition policy
01 February 2022
Big multinationals sometimes criticise the EU’s competition policy, which is more aggressive than America’s. But in the long term, Brussels’ approach could prove more balanced and predictable than Washington’s.
Bulletin issue 142 - February/March 2022
24 January 2022
- Britain needs a new Russia policy, Ian Bond, Duncan Allan
- How the Digital Markets Act will challenge consumers, Zach Meyers
- Transatlantic turmoil is not over, Megan Ferrando, Luigi Scazzieri
How the Digital Markets Act will challenge consumers
24 January 2022
The European Parliament’s proposals to tame big tech will challenge consumers. Some of these proposals will promote innovation – but law-makers should drop proposals which will stifle it.
No pain, no gain? The Digital Markets Act
10 January 2022
The EU's upcoming rules for big tech will degrade some digital services to improve long-term competition and innovation. The trade-off is justified – but law-makers must keep consumers on-side.
The cost of Brexit: October 2021
13 December 2021
In October 2021, UK goods trade was 15.7 per cent, or £12.6 billion, lower than it would have been if the UK had stayed in the EU’s single market and customs union.
The three deaths of EU-UK data adequacy
15 November 2021
European and British businesses can still freely transfer personal data between the EU and UK. This situation has spared both sides disruption – but is unlikely to last.
Opening Pandora's Box: What the EU-UK trade deal means for trade and conditionality
13 October 2021
The EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement includes world-leading sustainability commitments.
Leave your phone at home: Why EU roaming charges will only increase for UK consumers
20 September 2021
Will the end of free EU roaming make the UK mobile market fairer, as some economists claim? Don’t bet on it.
Driving uncertainty: Labour rights in the gig economy
10 August 2021
The European Commission should treat competition policy as a tool to improve the rights of ‘gig economy’ workers – not a hindrance to that goal.
The cost of Brexit: May 2021
21 July 2021
The Centre for European Reform estimates that leaving the single market and customs union has reduced UK trade in goods by £10 billion or 13.5 per cent in May 2021.
Reality bytes: The limits of transatlantic digital co-operation
13 July 2021
The EU and the US plan to boost co-operation on digital policy. They should not prioritise regulatory harmonisation, and instead work on areas where mutual compromise is more realistic.
Can the EU set a global rulebook for Big Tech?
01 June 2021
The EU is angling to set a rulebook for digital markets which could be adopted around the world. To achieve this, its draft regulations need improvement.
The US and the Northern Ireland Protocol: Time to walk the walk
07 May 2021
The US wants the UK to diverge from EU food hygiene rules and to prioritise political and economic stability in Northern Ireland. But what if the UK can’t do both?
Taming 'Big Tech': How the Digital Markets Act should identify gatekeepers
04 May 2021
The European Commission is rushing to impose new rules on large digital platforms. A more careful approach would benefit European digital businesses.
The EU's carbon border adjustment mechanism: How to make it work for developing countries
22 April 2021
The EU should exempt developing country exports from its CBAM to avoid unfairly penalising countries that have contributed a much smaller share of cumulative global carbon emissions.
The US proposals on digital services taxes and minimum tax rates: How the EU should respond
15 April 2021
OECD members are negotiating a global digital services tax and a global minimum corporate tax. EU member-states should support recent US proposals to conclude the talks.
The cost of Brexit: February 2021
13 April 2021
We estimate that leaving the single market and customs union had reduced UK trade by 5 per cent by February 2021. That is on top of a 10 per cent hit to trade between the referendum and leaving the single market.