European Union
A fresh deal and a fresh settlement
Pressure has been building all weekend for the Prime Minister to give some form of concession to his eurosceptic backbenchers in his statement on the outcome of the Brussels summit.… Continue reading
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Ministerial aides push Cameron on EU
David Cameron’s attempt to placate backbenchers clamouring for an EU referendum by writing a piece in yesterday’s Sunday Telegraph has not gone down particularly well. Backbenchers are more than mildly… Continue reading
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Missed history lessons
It’s a slow news day in the political world, as we wait for the Spanish government to take its cap to Brussels. There are, however, some brilliant opinion pieces in… Continue reading
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Cameron defies increasingly isolated Merkel
‘No’ used to be the French prerogative in matters of European integration. Charles de Gaulle made a late career out of it. But perhaps the title is passing to Britain.… Continue reading
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David Owen: It’s time for a referendum on Europe
There is an intriguing intervention from Lord Owen in this morning’s Times (£) — and he has also written a book on the subject, Europe Restructured?. He writes: ‘The [likely… Continue reading
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Post-Jubilee, it’s back to a new European reality
As the Jubilee celebrations draw to a close, attention once more returns to events in Europe. There’s a distinct sense among politicians, and especially coalition ministers, that what is happening… Continue reading
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The deeper problem behind Europe’s rising carbon emissions
The Government takes a lot of stick for blaming the weather when there are queues at airports or lacklustre growth figures. Now the European Union is blaming a ‘colder winter’,… Continue reading
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Clegg takes on the Establishment (and the Tories) again
So Nick Clegg wants to present himself as anti-Establishment, does he? That’s hardly surprising. After all, the Deputy Prime Minister has ploughed this furrow before now, attacking the ‘vested interests’… Continue reading
33 Comments
Let’s show Eurovision some respect
There are calls for Britain to pull out of the Eurovision Song Contest, after Engelbert Humperdinck finished second-last on Saturday, with Norway bottom. The Mayor of Leicester has today denounced… Continue reading
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Will a Greek exit mean an EU referendum?
A couple of weeks ago, James revealed that the promise of an EU referendum is almost certain to feature in the 2015 Tory manifesto. But might we actually have one… Continue reading
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Off target on immigration
How goes the Tories’ plan to reduce net migration to the ‘tens of thousands’ over this Parliament? Not too well, judging by the latest ONS figures released today. As it… Continue reading
33 Comments
Why reason doesn’t apply to the Eurozone
The Eurozone is a kind of lunacy if you look at it as an economic project. But this isn’t about economics, or rationality — it’s about emotion, as the leader… Continue reading
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Merkel heads to the G8
I doubt that Angela Merkel is looking forward to the G8 summit very much. It will mostly consist of the other world leaders telling her to give ground on austerity.… Continue reading
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The View from 22: Greece is burning
The upcoming Greek elections will push the nation into a confrontation with the European authorities, reports Faisal Islam, the economics editor of Channel 4 News, in his cover feature for… Continue reading
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Basel III and the EU’s strange desire not to compete
Greece is the centre of European attention, but as George Osborne met with other EU finance ministers today there was another issue bubbling in the background — Basel III. This… Continue reading
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Greece is still the word
Remember when Europe’s leaders were basically saying, ‘Don’t worry, it’s all sorted’? Remember when they were putting out communiqués that started ‘The euro continues to rest on solid fundamentals’? No… Continue reading
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The View from 22: Will the riots return?
We haven’t done enough to prevent the riots of last summer happening again, says Simon Marcus in this week’s cover feature. And in the latest episode of our The View… Continue reading
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Why the Tories are shaping up for an EU referendum
An EU referendum pledge in the next Tory manifesto is ‘basically, a certainty’ according to one of those most closely involved in the party’s electoral strategy for 2015. The current… Continue reading
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Hollande, Cameron and the 21st arrondissement
While David Cameron has good cause to be glad of Sarkozy’s defeat, he has even better cause to be nervous about this trend of lefty nerds being elected. Much of… Continue reading
31 Comments
How to get around the EU (and weed smokers)
The Dutch government has just banned foreigners from the country’s ‘coffee-shops’ — aka, cannabis cafés. Given how often we’re told that you can’t ban EU members from doing anything, how… Continue reading
21 Comments