Coronavirus
The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing governments to shut down society, run enormous deficits and close borders. And many EU orthodoxies are being challenged: the role of the European Central Bank, the bloc’s fiscal rules, and its principles of free movement, free trade and limited state aid. Meanwhile, China is eyeing the strategic advantage it can gain from the haphazard response in the West.
Schengen will survive the pandemic - the single market may not
06 October 2020
Encompass
Ever since the EU’s members began closing their borders to contain transmission of the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus, many have heralded Schengen’s demise.
Wer kommt besser durch die Corona-Krise, Europa oder die USA?
24 August 2020
Süddeutsche Zeitung
Die Arbeitslosigkeit in den USA steigt wieder, nachdem viele US-Staaten vorzeitig die Restriktionen des öffentlichen Lebens zurück genommen hatten und es dadurch zu einem Anstieg der COVID-19-Infektionen kam.
The EU recovery fund is a historic step, almost
21 May 2020
Financial Times
Frugal states may block needed transfers to the south but there is a way forward.
How coronavirus is reshaping Europe in dangerous ways
14 May 2020
The Guardian
From green backlash to reimposition of border controls, pandemic is accelerating tensions that could unravel the EU.
Coronavirus: EU struggling to show solidarity in face of ‘existential’ crisis
21 April 2020
The Parliament Magazine
The EU’s response to COVID-19 has given plenty of ammunition to its opponents. Frontiers have been closed and supply chains broken as countries have put their own needs first.
Here's how the UK should work with EU to combat coronavirus and end the lockdown
16 April 2020
The Telegraph
As the coronavirus pandemic continues its rampage around Europe, neither the British government nor the EU plans to extend the transition period.
After coronavirus: How will Europe rebuild?
12 April 2020
The Guardian
Coronavirus has given hope to those who wish to see the EU stumble. Countries have put their own needs first and trust among governments has diminished.
Las dos fases económicas del coronavirus
09 April 2020
ES Global
Las autoridades europeas deben contrarrestar los enormes costes de la contención del virus y, al mismo tiempo, mantener una deuda sostenible en todos los Estados miembros de la eurozona.
Sharing the fiscal burden of the crisis: A Pandemic Solidarity Instrument for the EU
05 April 2020
VoxEU
To ensure that all EU countries can do what is necessary to fight the economic fallout of the pandemic, the fiscal costs of this crisis must be shared.
The EU needs to counter Italy's coronavirus-induced Euroscepticism
03 April 2020
Prospect
The coronavirus crisis may be unprecedented in living memory, but for many Italians the EU’s reaction has been no surprise.
The EU can emerge stronger from the coronavirus crisis
01 April 2020
Encompass
The coronavirus pandemic has become a stress test for the European project.
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.
Coronavirus pandemic is a make or break moment for the EU
26 March 2020
Financial Times
“The EU’s hands are pretty much tied in the area of public health”, says Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform in Brussels.
Europe fumbled coronavirus at first. Can it manage the pandemic now?
26 March 2020
The New York Times
“We need to be pretty honest and say that the initial E.U. response was chaotic and belated,” said Agata Gostynska-Jakubowska of the Centre for European Reform in Brussels.
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.”
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."