Press

For some in Europe, high lending rates hamper recovery

Simon Tilford
12 May 2014
The New York Times
“It [differences in lending costs] is something that guarantees economic divergence,” said Simon Tilford, deputy director of the CER in London, “and it will make it hard to generate growth in the south, without which those countries’ debts will be unsustainable.”

Getting out? UK exit from EU less likely

Simon Nixon
11 May 2014
The Wall Street Journal
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the City has little to fear from further eurozone integration but much to lose from EU exit, according to the Centre for European Reform.

EU exit: deception and exaggeration

09 May 2014
EurActiv
Despite the rise of UKIP and the potential electoral triumph for Eurosceptics in the coming EU elections, some commentators like Charles Grant (of the Centre for European Reform) believe an In/Out referendum is winnable.

Barroso sees Britain as a 'special' case within EU

George Parker and James Fontanella-Khan
08 May 2014
Financial Times
The CER has concluded that if Britain left the EU, banks would shift some of their activities to elsewhere in the 28-member bloc. “The remaining member states would insist that Britain sign up to many rules, in exchange for more limited access to European markets than it currently enjoys,” the report says.

G7 Energy Ministers’ Meeting: Agreement on breaking Russian dependence.

Stephen Tindale
08 May 2014
Mainichi Newspaper
“According to Stephen Tindale, associate fellow at the Centre for European Reform, a British think tank familiar with the European energy situation: “For many years there has been little cost incentive to promote the spread of energy conservation and renewables. However, in the wake of efforts to reduce dependency on Russian energy, now is the time for drastic reforms.”

The Eurosceptics have browbeaten us. It's time we stopped cringing

Martin Kettle
08 May 2014
The Guardian
That's why, if only from self-interest, we ought to care more about which EU-wide group wins these elections. It's why we ought to be engaged with the arguments between the centre-right's Jean-Claude Juncker or the centre-left's Martin Schulz, on which the Guardian reports today.

Video interview on 'The consequences of Brexit for the City of London'

08 May 2014
John Springford talks about his and Philip Whyte's latest policy brief 'The consequences of Brexit for the City of London'.

An independent UK could become dirty man of Europe again

Stephen Tindale
07 May 2014
Environmental Health News
Polls predicts fervently anti-EU parties, such as the UK Independence Party, will make significant inroads in this month's European elections. And if David Cameron wins the next general election, he has pledged to hold an in/out referendum on the EU. However Stephen Tindale, associate fellow at the Centre for European Reform, argues indepdence would put at risk all the environmental and health benefits that flow from EU membership.

Erholung im Euroraum, Fehler der EZB

Christian Odendahl
07 May 2014
Der Standard
„Die EZB hat den großen Fehler begangen, nicht vorbeugend auf den sich abzeichnenden Deflationsdruck aus der Peripherie zu reagieren“, kritisiert auch Christian Odendahl, Chefökonom am Centre for European Reform, im Standard-Gespräch.

Ukraine: Unclear how far Putin is willing to go

02 May 2014
CNBC
CER's Ian Bond, director of foreign policy, comments on Ukraine following the launch of the government's operation to retake control in eastern parts of the country.

Protesters try to block Russian 'Arctic oil' shipment

02 May 2014
Voice of America
"At least half of the (Russian) national state budget comes from sales of hydrocarbons to Europe,” said Ian Bond, of the CER. “Although in the winter it would be true that Europe would freeze before Gazprom went bankrupt, in the summer Europe has more levers."

European Parliament faces shrinking middle in election

01 May 2014
The Wall Street Journal
"The most important thing about these elections is the impact they could have on domestic parties, especially in the UK and France," said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, a London-based think-tank.

EU migration - good for the economy, tricky for politicians

01 May 2014
Reuters Insider
CER's John Springford, senior research fellow, talks about EU migration (see 00:14).

Belarus sets new EU agenda, calms neighbours, executes a murderer - western press digest

Devin Ackles
30 April 2014
Belarus Digest
Can the EU help Belarus to guard its independence? – Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform, notes that Minsk is keen not to become too dependent on Russia, and have therefore renewed their on-and-off flirtation with the EU. The analyst notes that there are clear limits to how far any rapprochement can go.

Belarus is now at risk of losing its independence to Russia

30 April 2014
New Statesman
Most Belarusians have a somewhat weaker sense of identity than Ukrainians but they feel Belarusian rather than Russian.
Returning to Belarus, a flat land of nearly ten million people, after an interval of five years, I found that very little had changed: Alexander Lukashenko remains president (as he has been since...

Was bringt QE in Europa?

Mark Schieritz
30 April 2014
Die Zeit
Ich habe hier die These vertreten, dass die EZB keine unkonventionellen Maßnahmen beschließen wird. Was aber, wenn doch? Christian Odendahl vom CER hat sich angeschaut, was Quantitative Easing für die Euro-Zone bedeuten würde. Ergebnis: Nicht allzu viel. Odendahl diskutiert zwei Wirkungskanäle, über die Anleihekäufe Produktion und Inflation beeinflussen können....

ECB urged to ward off deflation threat

Christian Odendahl
30 April 2014
European Voice
Christian Odendahl of the CER said: "In the past, the ECB could point to inflation being close to target or expected to return to target in a reasonable amount of time. Now that the ECB predicts inflation at just 1.5 per cent in 2016, it will be harder to fend off political pressure for more easing."

US slaps Russia with sanctions: does Moscow deserve it?

28 April 2014
RT
Ian Bond, director of foreign policy, talks to RT's senior political correspondent, Anissa Naouai, about the US's sanctions on Russia (from 0:08).

EU Parliament flexes muscles despite sceptics’ rise

Shoaib-ur-Rehman Siddiqui
27 April 2014
Business Recorder
Charles Grant, director of the London-based Centre for European Reform, sees Parliament as a power-hungry, spendthrift cheerleader for a federal Europe, which he argues has too much influence over the Commission, driving unnecessary regulation.

Gran Bretagna fuori dall’Ue? Non è inevitabile

Marco Mongiello
26 April 2014
l'Unità
«L’uscita della Gran Bretagna dall’Ue non è inevitabile», sostiene Charles Grant, fondatore e direttore del think tank britannico Cer (Centre for European Reform) ed ex inviato a Bruxelles dell’Economist. Gli europeisti nel Regno Unito ci sono e nell’eventualità di un referendum si faranno sentire. Ora però è il momento degli...