Archive for category Foreign Affairs
That’s not a growth plan, this is a growth plan!
Posted by David Merlin-Jones in Economics, Foreign Affairs, Politics, Press Release, Social Cohesion, Tax and Spend on 16/03/2011
‘Rebalancing the economy’ and ‘promoting growth’ have been flagship phrases for the new Government. On Budget Day its strategy for growth will be announced, but a report by independent think tank Civitas shows that current plans do not go far enough. In Economic Growth – Could the Government do more?, David Green and David Merlin-Jones argue that some of the Government’s own policies are major obstacles to recovery.
The full press release is available here
Economic Growth – Could the Government do more? is available here
A Little Less Conversation…
Posted by Carolina Bracken in Civil Liberty, European Union, Foreign Affairs, Human Rights on 28/01/2011
Human Rights Watch World Report 2011 has slammed the EU for its overreliance on dialogue rather than action in tackling human rights abuse, and for its “obsequious” approach to known rights violators. Whilst there is no inherent harm in cooperative dialogue, the EU seems “particularly infatuated” with this discursive model.
The Greek Wall of Immigration Control
Posted by Carolina Bracken in European Union, Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Immigration on 05/01/2011
In an attempt to curb its growing illegal immigration crisis, Greece has revealed plans to erect a 128 mile wall along its Turkish border. The Ministry of Public Order has stated that Greece “has reached its limits in taking in illegal immigrants”, with over 100,000 entering the country in 2010.
Plugging the WikiLeaks
Posted by David Merlin-Jones in America, Civil Liberty, Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Politics on 02/12/2010
The WikiLeaks story has, along with Snowmaggedon, been the central theme of this week’s news. Opinions appear very sharply divided between those who think the leaks are ‘putting lives at risk’ and others who feel the goings-on of high politics should be accessible to all. The niggling questions are: do the leaks really matter at all and if so, who should bear the responsibility for a negative outcome?
Julian Assange, editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks
Speculators, not as spectacular as governments
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, European Union, Foreign Affairs, Politics on 15/11/2010
With the turmoil that engulfed the global financial system in 2008, a few financial actors have, at one time or another, borne the brunt of the public’s anger. Bankers and hedge-fund managers have been widely criticised. Speculators, however, have been the target of recent outrage. Read the rest of this entry »
Intellectual impropriety
Posted by David Merlin-Jones in Economics, Foreign Affairs, Politics on 11/11/2010
During Prime Minister David Cameron’s visit to China, big names in British industry have been publicising the achievements that they hope the trip will deliver. One such voice is that of Sir Anthony Bamford, the chairman of JCB who has called for stricter measures to be taken against ‘unscrupulous Far Eastern competitors’ that exploit Western intellectual property (IP). This issue is about more than simply a loss of revenue and pride: without a crackdown, the Western world’s competitive advantage in high-tech production could soon disappear. Read the rest of this entry »