Having spent months examining the workings of the judicial arm of the EU, the House of Lords EU Committee has predicted that a “crisis of workload” could be on the near horizon. Without urgent and far-reaching structural reform, the Committee warns, the CJEU risks sinking under its own weight.
For a reasonably large document (214 pages) the Independent Commission on Banking’s (ICB) Interim Report doesn’t really propose an awful lot. The report grasps the heart of the problem, yet does not embrace any reforms which it demands.
By Aoife O’Donnell This week heralded a new cap on immigration to the UK. The policy should come as a surprise to no one: the ‘numbers game’ has long been a feature of the British debate on immigration. The cap is the highest-profile element of a regulatory package of policies meant to meet the Government’s… [Read More]
Yesterday I was fortunate enough to attend the British Chambers of Commerce annual conference. It provided an opportunity to hear the views of the business community and what the Government is doing to stimulate and facilitate economic growth. It also provided an opportunity to hear from the opposition, courtesy of Ed Miliband MP, about Labour’s… [Read More]
In 2008, MEPs gave the green light to a new museum, designed to showcase the “common historical memory” of the European Union and “bring Europe’s history alive”. Set to open in 2014, this Brussels-based “House of European History” (HEH) will sprawl over an acre and has an expected price tag of several million euro. However,… [Read More]
The mudslinging has started, the rhetoric is now in full flow and the cries of hypocrisy have begun to get louder. Unpaid internships. What, oh what, are we to do? On the one hand, a valuable exercise and CV trophy, on the other, a period of being a wage-slave without even the wage. As Nick… [Read More]
The EU’s single market is epitomised by its adherence to the four freedoms, as set down in the Single European Act: the free movement of goods, persons, services and capital. Vital for the successful realisation of these four principles is the EU’s transport policy. Yet this area is under increasing pressure to modernise and evolve… [Read More]
By Tom Shakhli Poor old social media. You would think that having put us back in touch with our old school friends, broadened our work networks, and facilitated a revolution or two, we would cut it some slack and be content to take a step back and marvel as it continues to sweep through the… [Read More]
Last week saw George Osborne announce his second budget. Some applauded it as being pro-growth and supportive of the private sector. This assessment is debateable, and in the important area of tax there were few significant decisions taken, other than the reduction of corporation tax by 2% with a proposal to reduce it eventually to… [Read More]
‘The Budget for Growth’ was how Chancellor George Osborne described it. Really? Of timid growth perhaps, but not the real growth Britain needs to see. Moreover, it has prioritised unrealistic green targets over economic development – a highly unwise manoeuvre. Below, the good, the ok and the really bad points of The Budget are unravelled.