Posts Tagged European Union
Der seltsame Fall des Dr. Jekyll und Mr. Hyde
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, European Union, Foreign Affairs, Politics on 21/10/2011
While British politicians gear up for a debate on whether or not to hold a referendum on EU membership, and discussion swirls around how the British public feels about Europe, perhaps more important is how the German public feels.
EU holds back UK economic recovery
Posted by Nick Cowen in European Union, Press Release on 17/10/2011
Britain must plan exit strategy from failing EU, but should keep trade links
As Europe’s leaders gamble their nations’ finances on saving the Euro, a new Civitas report reveals that the European Union is damaging Britain’s economic recovery and sapping job growth. Time to Say No, by Ian Milne, shows that a break with the EU need not represent a drastic break with Europe itself. Instead, it will permit a pragmatic reform of trade and immigration relations. Existing international institutions can achieve this without the current burdens of bureaucracy in the EU. It will also revive democracy at home.
Warning Hymn of the Tiger Economies
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics on 06/10/2011
It is not clear if David Cameron was really planning on telling ‘households – all of us’ to pay off ‘credit card and store card bills’ or whether he really just meant that in general ‘the only way out of a debt crisis is to deal with your debts’. Whatever Mr Cameron’s original intention, it would be worth politicians, at home and in Europe, thinking about the relationship between debt, spending and austerity.
A bad day to release good news
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, European Union, Politics, Tax and Spend on 19/09/2011
Today news emerged that Jaguar Land Rover plans to invest £335 million to build low-emission engines at a site near Wolverhampton. The proposed investment is expected to directly create approximately 750 jobs, with many more indirectly created in the supply chain and wider economy. Such news is welcome, but perhaps overshadowed by the economic gloom, which was propounded today when the Financial Times reported that there is likely to be a £12 billion hole in the UK’s public finances for 2011-12.
Transparency in the EU: As clear as mud
Posted by Natalie Hamill in European Union on 06/07/2011
EU member states are pushing forward with a decision which could reduce transparency at the EU level, writes Lucy Hatton. A recent ruling by the General Court of the EU, which would enhance the transparency of the deliberations in the Council of the EU, is set to be appealed against by a majority of EU member states (including the UK). The decision to challenge such a case is a damning verdict on the Treaty of Lisbon’s attempts to improve the democratic accountability of the Council: the most secretive of all EU institutions.
Image by Rajosta
Curing British procurement
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, European Union, Politics on 20/06/2011
Although the business press concentrated on Greece’s economic woes over the weekend, more attention should’ve been paid to the British economy and news that train-maker Bombardier is to review its UK operations. It is speculated that the reason for the review is the failure of the firm to win a major contract to build carriages for the Thameslink project. Does the decision suggest it’s time to rethink the Government’s procurement strategy?
