John Springford

John Springford

Associate fellow
Areas of expertise 

Britain and Europe, migration and labour markets, the single market and supply side reform, international trade, the euro, fiscal and monetary policy.

Twitter 
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Populism – culture or economics?

30 October 2017
Are economic factors to blame for the rise of populism, or is it a cultural backlash? The answer is a bit of both: economic weakness strengthens social conservatives' illiberal views.
How strong a Brexit card is Britain's money?

How strong a Brexit card is Britain's money?

19 September 2017
Britain’s strongest card in the negotiations is the money that the 27 claim it owes to the EU. But the money card gives Britain a pair rather than a flush.
Why Brexiters should get behind Philip Hammond's transition

Why Brexiters should get behind Philip Hammond's transition

01 August 2017
A comprehensive transition that includes continued membership of the single market and customs union is ultimately in the interest of hardliners in the British government.
How should the EU react to Britain's general election?

How should the EU react to Britain's general election?

15 June 2017
The EU-27 can force Britain's politicians to acknowledge Brexit’s trade-offs, by offering the British four options from which it must choose.

What does the election result mean for Brexit?

09 June 2017
Brexit barely figured in the UK's general election, but the result means that the country might yet have an election fought explicitly on the issue.

Why no deal would be much worse than a bad deal

24 May 2017
Theresa May and several of her ministers have claimed that no Brexit deal would be better than a poor deal. They are wrong.

A prime minister unshackled

09 May 2017
Checks on prime ministerial power are weak in Britain – and Theresa May’s massive parliamentary majority after the general election will weaken them further. In the context of Brexit, this is dangerous.
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.

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

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.

Customs union membership is no way out of the Brexit trap

16 December 2016
Remaining in the customs union seems to be the least damaging way for Britain to ‘take back control’, but it is fraught with difficulties.