Press
Illegal immigration emerges as new crisis for Greece - and EU
15 September 2012
The Wall Street Journal
Last year, some 351,000 people were in the EU illegally by overstaying their visas... "The attention needs to be shifted to that too," said Hugo Brady of the CER. "Greece isn't the cause of illegal immigration, it's a serious patch of vulnerability."
German court rejects calls to block eurozone rescue fund
13 September 2012
USA Today
Simon Tilford, chief economist at the CER said the ruling's most interesting aspects were the conditions attached. "It's unlikely that the German government would vote to increase the amount of money that it can commit to the fund," he said.
Defence sector plans for hard times ahead
13 September 2012
Financial Times
"Faced with the lack of demand in Europe, the name of the game for many European defence companies has been to try and get into other markets like the US," says Clara Marina O’Donnell of the CER.
London sees commercial sense of alliance
12 September 2012
Financial Times
"One of the interesting questions is what this means for the much-vaunted Franco-British defence relationship," said Clara Marina O’Donnell of the Centre for European Reform.
Spanish leader yet to agree on bailout conditions
11 September 2012
Marketplace
Refusing to go along with the austerity measures could jeapordize other EU governments support for the bailout program, according to Simon Tilford of the CER. If that happened, "the ECB will not be allowed to buy the debt," Tilford said.
El 'eje del Norte' afloja la presión
09 September 2012
El Pais
"No hay duda de que los años de crisis [economica] han tenido un impacto primera vez, Alemania está en una posición abiertamente dominante", comenta Simon Tilford, economista del Centre for European Reform.
European bank move could help economy
07 September 2012
Voice of America
"This is an argument about money, said Simon Tilford of the CER. "Who pays for misallocated capital, profligate borrowers or irresponsible lenders? The only way of addressing this kind of problem is by both sides taking a hit. And so far the full burden of adjustment is being imposed on the debtors."
In launching cases, Commission shows it plays by rules
06 September 2012
The Wall Street Journal
"It's commendable that the commission is prepared to stand up for little Eastern European countries at the risk of hurting relations with Russia," said Charles Grant director of the Centre for European Reform, a London-based think-tank.
Economist Sinn rattles Merkel laboring to save euro
06 September 2012
Bloomberg Businessweek
"Economists like Hans-Werner Sinn have contributed to a climate in which the German government has felt constrained in what it can agree at a eurozone level," says Simon Tilford, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform in London.
Weidmann isolated as ECB plan approved
06 September 2012
Financial Times
"One question is whether the benefits from the bond buying are going to be enough to offset the damage inflicted by the conditionality attached," said Simon Tilford of the CER think-tank, reflecting fears that swingeing spending cuts and tax rises may kill off anaemic economic growth.
Draghis plan vil købe tid, men ikke redde euroen
06 September 2012
Information
"Det er kun en effektiv bagstopper, hvis betingelserne, der opstilles for landene, giver mening. Det er fejlen ved planen. Nøglespørgsmålet vil være, om fordelene ved opkøb af statsobligationer vil være store nok til at opveje skaderne fra de strukturelle reformprogrammer. Hvis ikke, så kan programmet vise sig at virke imod hensigten. Jeg tror ikke på, at den vil være en game changer," siger cheføkonom Simon Tilford fra tænketanken CER i London til Information.
Peut-on croire Draghi?
05 September 2012
Les Echos
LE CERCLE. Mario Draghi, le président de la Banque Centrale Européenne, a affirmé à plusieurs reprises que la BCE ferait tout ce qui est nécessaire pour sauver l'euro.
German court holds eurozone fate in its hands
03 September 2012
Reuters
Katinka Barysch of the Centre for European Reform said this debate "suits both the opposition and government", giving the Social Democrats an easy platform and enabling Merkel to "put off hard decisions until after the 2013 election".
Britain and Europe going through gradual disengagement
03 September 2012
EurActiv
What is now clear, as others such as the Centre for European Reform have concluded, is that Britain is increasingly losing the support of its natural soulmates in East and Central Europe, nearly all of whom remain outside the euro and who have generally shared a more eurosceptic approach than the federalist core.
Can Draghi be believed?
03 September 2012
Project Syndicate
LONDON – Mario Draghi, the president of the European Central Bank, has repeatedly claimed that the ECB will do everything necessary to save the euro.
Unione politica il traguardo e non l'alibi per stare fermi
02 September 2012
Il sole 24 Ore
Ho appena letto la nota di Katinka Baysch, vice-direttore del CER di Londra, che il 29 agosto segnala sul sito dello stesso Cer il duplice rischio che l'Europa dell'Spd appaia ai tedeschi la "transfer union" che essi non accettano e agli europei del Sud...
Weidemann resignation report turns up heat on ECB's Draghi
31 August 2012
The Guardian
Simon Tilford of the CER said that to have a significant impact on Italian and Spanish borrowing costs, the ECB plan must banish investor concerns that the two countries' membership of the eurozone would ever be threatened. "Unfortunately, the ECB is highly unlikely to do enough to convince investors that membership is unequivocally forever, not least because the Bundesbank opposes any open-ended commitment to cap borrowing costs."
Let the Bundesbank chief resign if he wants to, it'll be no bad thing
31 August 2012
The Daily Telegraph
The problem has been brilliantly summarised by Simon Tilford, of the CER, in his latest blog. Here's just a taste. "Countries facing depressions and rapidly weakening inflation typically face very low borrowing costs: investors invest in government bonds for a want of profitable alternatives. ..
Can imagination save the eurozone?
30 August 2012
Market Watch
Hugo Brady of the Centre for European Reform, recently proposed the concept of a political union with a 15-year expiration date, giving European citizens the ability to cede powers to a federal center but only for a fixed period. Could it work? Could a bit of imagination save the European Union? Let’s hope so, because, as McNamara warned, logic may not.
Ukraine turns to China for cash to duck vote-damaging deal terms
30 August 2012
Bloomberg
"Ukraine is trying to avoid the conditionality that comes with EU, IMF or Russian money," said Tomas Valasek of the CER in London. "Europe wants reform and transparency in the energy sector and Russia wants control of key industries. That creates political difficulties before the elections."