Research

Brexiting Swiss-style: The best possible UK-EU trade deal

Brexiting Swiss-style: The best possible UK-EU trade deal

24 April 2017
The softest form of hard Brexit that is plausible – given the red lines of the 27 and Britain – is something like Switzerland's deal with the EU.
No entry: What Trump’s migration policies mean for the EU

No entry: What Trump’s migration policies mean for the EU

Camino Mortera-Martinez
10 April 2017
Trump's 'Muslim ban' does not apply to EU citizens. But his migration and security policies may have unexpected effects in Europe.

Is the EU's single market leading to convergence or divergence?

Simon Tilford
04 April 2017
The single market's 'agglomeration effects' – the tendency of wealthier areas to attract capital and skills – seem as strong as the 'catch-up effects' of poorer members importing capital and expertise.

Bulletin Issue 113 - April/May 2017

Charles Grant, Christian Odendahl, Sophia Besch
20 March 2017

The meaning of Macron

20 March 2017
The surge of support for Emmanuel Macron in France shows that liberal, pro-EU centrists may yet have a future in European politics. This would be good for the EU.

Can Martin Schulz beat Angela Merkel?

Christian Odendahl
20 March 2017
A chancellor Schulz would be good news for the eurozone economy. But he would not differ much from Merkel on Brexit.

Playing defence

Sophia Besch
20 March 2017
The UK’s contributions to European defence will play a role in Brexit negotiations. But both sides should keep the long-term objective of close co-operation in mind.
Berlin to the rescue? A closer look at Germany's position on Brexit

Berlin to the rescue? A closer look at Germany's position on Brexit

Sophia Besch, Christian Odendahl
17 March 2017
Brexiters hope that Berlin will adopt an accommodating stance in the forthcoming negotiations because of Germany's economic and security interests. Such hopes are misplaced.

The EU, the Eurasian Economic Union and One Belt, One Road: Can they work together?

16 March 2017
The EU, Russia's Eurasian Economic Union and China's One Belt, One Road initiative may become rival spheres of influence. But could they complement each other instead?

Contested space: Eastern Europe between Russia and the EU

09 March 2017
The EU's Eastern Partners are caught between the West, which excludes them from its organisations, and Russia, which tries to force them into its orbit.

Are the scenarios in Juncker’s White Paper on the future of the EU realistic?

Camino Mortera-Martinez
03 March 2017
On Wednesday, the European Commission presented its ‘White Paper on the future of Europe’, ahead of the Treaty of Rome’s 60th anniversary celebrations on March 25th.

Double Dutch: Why Wilders wins, even if he stays out of government

Rem Korteweg
03 March 2017
The anti-migrant, anti-Islam, eurosceptic firebrand Geert Wilders could come out on top in this month’s Dutch elections. If so, he will be kept out of government, for now.

Trump, trade and the EU: Two wrongs don't make a right

John Springford, Christian Odendahl
23 February 2017
The US will not gain by resorting to protectionism. If it does so, the EU should stay calm, listen when US criticism is justified, and make its first priority the defence of the WTO process and the rule of law.

The end of the transatlantic trade consensus?

Rem Korteweg
21 February 2017
Trump, Brexit and European scepticism about TTIP spell the end of transatlantic leadership on trade.

Mrs May's emerging deal on Brexit: Not just hard, but also difficult

20 February 2017
What will the Brexit deal look like? Which are the key decisions that Theresa May still has to make? And what should she do in order to get the best possible deal?

The year of Brexit and Trump: Annual report 2016

Charles Grant, Simon Tilford, Ian Bond, Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, Camino Mortera-Martinez
13 February 2017
The CER's annual report features essays on how Brexit and Trump are changing the world. It also highlights CER research on Brexit, economics, foreign policy and much else.
Crisis of capitalism? Perhaps, but don’t blame it on globalisation

Crisis of capitalism? Perhaps, but don't blame it on globalisation

Simon Tilford
10 February 2017
Globalisation did not force governments to adopt policies that divided their countries, exacerbated inequality and hit social mobility. Many of them did those things by choice.

The €60 billion Brexit bill: How to disentangle Britain from the EU budget

Alex Barker
06 February 2017
A stand-off between the EU and Britain over the size of its exit bill could lead to the collapse of negotiations and an abrupt, disorderly Brexit.
The EU and Libya: Realism or irrelevance

The EU and Libya: Realism or irrelevance

03 February 2017
Europe cannot view Libya only through the lens of migration. It needs to stabilise the country, brokering a compromise between different factions.

Parliamentarians in Brexit talks: Bulls in a china shop?

Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska
01 February 2017
David Davis promised that Westminster will have the same scrutiny powers in the Brexit talks as the European Parliament would. But what does that really mean?