Expanding the Legacy
Tag: EU
24 Posts
Lessons on Longevity from Iron Mum
Almost two months to the day after the September 26 federal election Germany, a three-party coalition was unveiled, tasked with ushering in the post-Merkel era with social democrat Olaf Scholz (63) at the helm as chancellor. With the SPD (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands) at its core, the coalition rests on a...
Free Trade in Retreat
The EU free trade baton, carried by the UK until Brexit materialised, has been relayed to the ‘Stockholm Six’ of likeminded liberal countries pushing back against French and Italian pressure for Europe to get tougher on trade defence – and relax on subsidies. Germany was invited to join the informal...
Hard Limits to Sovereignty
It is not a good time to be a supporter of Brexit. If spin were a tradable commodity, all would be exceptionally well in the realm. Alas, it is not. The attempt by Prime Minister Boris Johnson to supplant essential elements of the Withdrawal Agreement, signed with the European Union...
UK Mulls Breaking Law
Eighty years, to the day, since living its Finest Hour, the Hinge of Fate turned Great Britain towards yet another nadir – the latest in a string of historic setbacks that slowly and painfully disassemble a once great power. On Monday, September 14, Parliament voted on the second reading of...
Chapter 51: Stage Set for EU Clash
Monday, May 25, 2020 – The Hague is expected to deploy the biggest gun available to EU member states and roll out its veto to derail a Franco-German plan that introduces eurobonds under a different name. Last week, the Dutch were said to have succumbed under pressure from Germany and...
The Revenge of the Nation State
The corona pandemic rapidly engulfing the world has led to a sudden reversal in the plight of the nation state as a concept. Rescued from well-deserved oblivion, even smaller countries that have traditionally embraced multilateralism as the only viable way to further their interests, the nation state resurfaced with an...
Nobody Satisfied: The Perfect Deal in Brussels
The ‘spitzenkandidat’ is dead. Long live the spitzenkandidat? As far as conundrums go, this was a particularly hard one for the European Parliament to consider: vote for and agree with your own demise, vote against and throw a spanner in the works. In the end, a compromise was reached.
Role and Impact of Venture Capital Exposed
Size matters. Two of Europe’s largest new tech firms, Spotify and Zalando, boast a combined market value of some $42 billion – a pittance in today’s world of behemoths. To put things in perspective: China’s Alibaba is worth north of $480 billion whilst the market cap of Facebook hovers around $550 billion. Apple and Amazon are close to the $1 trillion mark.
The Will of the People Manipulated
Stumbling or sleepwalking towards the exit of the European Union, Great Britain has put its national fate and destiny into the hands of voters who, for over forty years, have been spoon-fed a sheer interminable succession of half truths and outright lies about a body nearly everybody loves to blame for whatever ills the nation is suffering.
Turning the Tables
President Trump may enjoy his Twitter-powered banter and bluster; he is not quite getting his way either at home or abroad. As US relations with the European Union and others sour, President Trump pours out one problem after the other, blaming all and sundry – and particularly the much-maligned EU...
