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The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
Bruges Group Blog
Spearheading the intellectual battle against the EU. And for new thinking in international affairs.
Marathon talks have concluded between EU leaders as they battled over the details of its multibillion-euro pandemic recovery fund. With France and Germany head-to-head against the frugal four of Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden over grants, veto rights and funding criteria, you could be mistaken for seeing the talks as the break-up of t...
In the aftermath of the British exit from the EU, the concept of CANZUK, a largely economic alliance between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, all of which have the monarchy, the same common law systems, and parliamentary democracy, among others. However, the question remains, what has stopped these four countries, throughout ...
Brexit may have gone quiet lately in the mainstream media, but between now and the end of October will be critical. Remain have been defeated in trying to keep us in the EU, their plans for a 'People's Vote' have been defeated, and their attempts to extend the transition period have been defeated. Their last hope is that between now and October our...
In July 1988, a Gallup poll brought grim news for the campaign of George H.W. Bush. Conducted on 21st and 22nd of the same month, the survey found that the then Vice-President was trailing his Democratic challenger, Michael Dukakis, by 17 points - 38-55. Even worse for the Bush camp, it was far from the only poll that year which indicated that the ...
Shortly after the results of the second round of the Polish Presidential Election were confirmed by the National Electoral Commission, a Polish Pilgrim journeyed to the Jasna Góra Monastery in the southern Polish province of Silesia; home to the shrine of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa. Since the Middle Ages, the Monastery has been a destination ...
The week before last, the Minister of State for Universities, Michelle Donelan, announced that EU, EEA and Swiss nationals will no longer be granted home fee status and access to student loans at universities in England from 2021. While the move should not have come as any real shock to those properly following the Brexit saga, the decision has bee...
Roland Vaubel Professor emeritus of Economics Universitaet Mannheim Germany Mr. Barnier seems to misunderstand the argument for maintaining a level playing field. The laws of a country, above all, ought to reflect the preferences of its people. It follows that the laws ought to differ between countries if, and to the extent that, the preferences of...
Every year the International Council for the for the Exploration of the Sea and the European Union's Scientific, Technical and Economic Council for Fisheries make a suggestion of what the TAC should be for each stock. A stock of fish refers to a "particular species of fish caught in a particular geographic area". The European Commission drafts a pr...
By Alex Johnson It is often said that all good things come to those who wait. Whilst patience is indeed a virtue, it is not always a profitable one. With the Brexit negotiations deadline being the 31st December this year and with enough delays already being made since the 2016 referendum, time is running short. When one realises that it has ...
Margaret Thatcher's Bruges Speech to the College of Europe in September 1988 - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqv8HF84EOs&t=1s The Bruges Group was set up in 1989 in honour of one speech, a now landmark address made by our then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to the College of Europe on 20th September 1988 on the 'Future of Europe'. L...
There has been a telling change recently in the language used to describe the current status of the UK. Both Leavers and Remainers have dropped the pretence that Brexit happened on 31st January and are now openly referring to the 31st December as the date when the UK leaves the EU. While 31st January was the symbolic exit, the country has not in fa...
During this pandemic, I felt it would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look to the careers of some political giants who don't always get the recognition or remembrance they deserve. One of my greatest interests is political history and every Friday I will publish an article outlining the career and some interesting facts about some polit...
Almost four years after we voted to leave the European Union (EU), Boris Johnson delivered on his promise to 'GET BREXIT DONE'. Little did we know at the time (on 31st January 2020) that the year was going to bring its own woes, which are now threatening to bring down the European dream of unity, solidarity, and borderless territory. In addition to...
Originally published in The Critic by David Scullion https://thecritic.co.uk/the-government-split-over-free-trade/ The Government is committed to signing Free Trade deals. The Conservative Party's 2019 manifesto said as much, and added: "Our trade deals will not only be free but fair". The UK has just started trade talks with the United ...
During these awful and bleak times, I felt it would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look to the careers of some political giants who don't get the recognition or remembrance they deserve. One of my greatest interests is political history and every Friday I shall publish an article outlining the career and some interesting facts about so...
Institute of International Monetary Research Analysis Professor Tim Congdon CBE is a member of The Bruges Group Academic Advisory Council A lot of interest has been drawn from my recent emails to my fellow macroeconomists and monetary analysts where I pointed out that bank deposits at US commercial banks soared in the fortnight to ...
First published by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the Daily Telegraph https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2020/05/06/longer-brexit-transition-pointless-dangerous-plays-straight/ Sir Nick Clegg is right. The terms of the Brexit transition are intolerable. They were bad for one year. The arrangement becomes progressively more dangerous over time. ...
The Cummingsaffairfollowed a pattern familiar to those who have observed the Brexit process, since David Cameron announced the referendum. The pro EU media assisted by the civil service have lied, invented, threatened and twisted their way to what should have been ignominy. They have escaped that fate. Indeed, support from the Supreme Court's decis...
First of all, may I say congratulations to Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds who announced the birth of a healthy baby boy this morning, just after 10 am. It emerged last week that Britain would neither apply for, nor accept an extension, if offered, to the Brexit transition period from the EU. In his briefings, Chancellor Rishi Sunak set the ...
Those fond of disasters unhesitatingly claim that the seeds of the next catastrophe are created in the current one. One can understand the theory. Tulip Mania, the South Sea; Mississippi; Junk Bond and Dot-Com Bubbles are all examples of feverish speculation gone wrong. The problem does not, however, lie solely with get rich quick dreamers and spiv...
Due to current global events everything is changing. For the people of the United Kingdom, this means that there is a very real chance that the incredibly important Brexit deadline could unfortunately be delayed. An idea entertained in 2013, voted on in 2016 and finally realised earlier this year, the UK is still far from being really free from the...
The internet is full of conspiracy theories about the pandemic and blame aimed at shadowy elites, bankers, secret societies, national leaders and so on, all based on the political prejudices of those formulating or sharing the theories as if fact. These are a not very amusing distraction from lockdown, pictures of kittens, today's lunch, or even po...
Since the Eurozone crisis nearly a decade ago, the dysfunction of European governments has long been a point of contention for the United Kingdom. Even as it's Mediterranean partners; Greece, Spain and Portugal descended into a depression, most European leaders seemed indecisive and undecided on a suitable course of action. Now with more than ...
Ian Gow: Eminent Thatcherites by The Bruges Group - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwPRnfTdfVk&t=2s During these awful and bleak times, I felt it would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look to the careers of some political giants who don't get the recognition or remembrance they deserve. One of my greatest interests is polit...
Margaret Thatcher's Bruges Speech, 1988 on The Bruges Group YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqv8HF84EOs Today marks the death of our greatest peacetime leader, Margaret Thatcher, a woman who defined British politics for more than a generation. Elected as the first female leader of any major political party in the UK in 1975, su...
Just yesterday, the EU's President of the European Research Council, Mauro Ferrari, resigned over the EU's failure to act on his advice to set up a large scale, EU wide programme to combat COVID-19. Professor Ferrari only began the role at the turn of the year and submitted his resignation to the President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen...
Airey Neave: Eminent Thatcherites by The Bruges Group - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsnd8ESIktA During these awful and bleak times, I felt it would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look to the careers of some political giants who don't get the recognition or remembrance they deserve. One of my greatest interests is political ...
Last Wednesday, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, celebrated 28 days in Number 11, following Sajid Javid's resignation, by presenting his budget to the House. This budget delivered by the Richmond MP is arguably the most favourable budget since the days of Nigel Lawson standing at the dispatch box outlining his financial forecasts and s...
You may remember reading last week that a group of jihadists known as the Beatles had scored a Supreme Court victory over the Home Secretary. To remind you what it was all about, the Beatles were a charming group of ISIS zealots who had specialised in beheadings, torture and other yet more gruesome activities best not mentioned here, whom US forces...
I would like to share with you the speech and presentation I made at The Bruges Group annual conference in London on the 7th March. Whilst the UK officially left the EU on 31 January, it remains in its Single Market [paying some £1 billion (net) a month], its Customs Union and subject to the supremacy of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJ...
Arrests followed by imprisonment, in Britain, in normal times, have to be supported by evidence of wrongdoing already collected by the investigators beforehand. To make sure that this happens, Habeas Corpus stipulates that an arrested person must appear in open court within hours, or at the most a few days (or in very extreme terrorist ca...
Andrea Jenkyns MP speech to The Bruges Group annual conference - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMXpkxsAW20 On Saturday 7th March, we were hugely honoured to be addressed by Deputy Chair of the ERG, Andrea Jenkyns MP, at our annual conference. Andrea is a staunch Brexiteer and friend of The Bruges Group, she was a more than vocal critic of...
Mark Francois MP's speech to The Bruges Group annual conference - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZWLTchiEus The Bruges Group were honoured to have The Rt. Hon. Mark Francois MP, Chairman of the ERG, address our annual conference at Buckingham Gate in London on Saturday 7th March. The Bruges Group conference proved, as ever, to be an immen...
The European Union is facing one of its biggest challenges with the departure of one of its largest financial contributors in a midst of a widespread debt crisis. The United Kingdom on the other hand may have avoided one by implementing the 2016 referendum results thanks to Boris Johnson's thumping majority at the last General Election in Dece...
We are scheduled to begin what will hopefully be our last trade talks with the EU; I suspect we can be sure of a bumpy ride featuring the same of old EU tricks of deceit, mendacity, obfuscation, procrastination, threats and attempts to undermine our position through appeals to the Brussels 'Fifth Column' that is apparently still alive and well, and...
The look on my left leaning parents faces was a picture of horror as they stared down at my eight year old self, they looked at each other and said in shock and in unison: "Our son's a Conservative". My dear old dad, who I loved during all 84 years of his life, had been a member of the Communist Party in his youth, that was until they asked h...
A thought for BREXIT. Anne Widdecombe interviewed on Channel 4's 7pm news 31 January 2020 about the UK's imminent departure from the EU commented on how helpless she felt as a British Minister as law after law emerged from Brussels and how pleased she is now the UK is leaving. Its not a moment too soon. The Directives and Regulations are now ...
Boris Johnson and the Conservatives winning a more than impressive 365 seats last December, it gives the PM a working majority, something we haven't seen since the close of the Blair/Brown era.It is fair to say that the next step of Brexit will soon be taken; having left the EU further delays for implementation legislation were not tolerated. But w...
The first part of this article describes my experience of aid, starting over 40 years ago in Africa, and then in the ex-Soviet Union. Some will hotly deny my conclusions, but their veracity is only too apparent in the current state of the world and the decline in western values. Part one deals with the background and part 2 illustrates it...
So, Boris Johnson has now won the election with a very comfortable majority, on a ticket to "Get Brexit Done". Corbyn has lost decisively, and Jo Swinson was not even re-elected. The SNP has increased the number of its MPs, and Sturgeon has raised her voice again to demand a second independence referendum. However she appears not to have worked out...
Looking ahead, let us suppose that Boris Johnson wins a majority of seats on 12th December, as hoped. He has then promised to have his "Withdrawal Agreement" Treaty with the EU ratified by Parliament, possibly by Christmas. From then on, according to some optimists, it should be plain sailing to "Brexit" on 31st January, whereupon a "Transitio...
Beset by failure in running Scotland, at the SNP party conference in October leader Nicola Sturgeon was forced to bring forward her plan to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence in 2020. With all the SNP's legal moves against Brexit fizzling out or falling on stony ground, it has been forced by the success of Brexit arguments to reveal ...
As I assume you know, the Benn Act, or more commonly known as the Surrender Act, isn't the most well thought out piece of legislation, as lined out by Chair of Lawyers for Britain Martin Howe QC at The Bruges Group 'Moment of Truth' event in Manchester during Conservative Party conference. This article will outline the loopholes that Boris Johnson...
The reaction of the European Union negotiators and heads of state to Prime Minister Johnson's recent slate of proposals for eliminating the Irish backstop has exposed a fundamental truth about the Brexit negotiation process. So long as the EU must consent to British proposals for leaving under Article 50 of the Treaty of the European Union, the EU ...
By Andrew England Kerr MEP We've seen the usual tired old politics. What I haven't seen is any realisation of the real danger this country faces. Perhaps you have to see it first-hand to understand the true scale of it. I have over the past three weeks. I've watched the true force of the Franco-German domination of Europe as key positions are divvi...
Authors: Ethan Thoburn, Charles Wynne and Luke Alsford There are plenty of people talking about no deal Brexit at the moment and with Boris Johnson looking ever more likely to deliver that, we at The Bruges Group thought we would put together sort of a fact sheet on No Deal and how it won't leave us on a so called cliff edge as lots of the me...
There is probably no greater struggle in life than the one with oneself. The European Union has always been a contentious issue in this country this is why David Cameron decided to call a referendum. The so-called Remainers believed wholeheartedly that they could win it and lay to rest once and for all oppositions to the UK's EU membership, but it ...
The same four-letter word is being constantly branded around by the media. Whether talking about Theresa May's legacy, or discussing Boris Johnson's new negotiation, it never fails to disappear. That four-letter word is "deal". Yet this "deal": offered by Brussels, sold by Theresa May, defeated by MPs; seems dangerously close to being reborn. This ...
1. This Agreement – even without the 'Backstop' - will put the UK under the de facto jurisdiction of a group of 27 foreign powers, leaving the UK powerless to veto laws or procedures affecting the UK and its citizens. (Articles 4, 86, 87, 89, 132, 168, 174) 2. The EU27 can make decisions behind closed doors which can profoundly affect British busi...
This article was originally published on BrexitCentral by Christopher Howarth, https://brexitcentral.com/boris-johnson-should-beware-resuscitating-the-dead-may-deal-even-if-the-eu-agree-to-scrapping-the-backstop/ Let’s start with some recent history: the reason Boris Johnson is Prime Minister is because Theresa May’s draft Withdrawal Agreement...
A Withdrawal Agreement isn't a managed, amicable departing of ways, it is an unnecessary albatross around the neck of Albion – we must leave without one. Since late 2017, I have concurred with the view that the entire process of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which allocates of two years of negotiation between departing member-state with the...
Interview with Alice Grant: 'Why People Support Brexit Series' - Bruges Group Blog By Ethan Thoburn https://www.brugesgroup.com/blog/alice-grant-interview-with-ethan After previously speaking to Brexit supporting student Alice Grant and then royal superfan and former Labour Party member Joseph Afrane, this episode I spoke to the organisers of the '...
Initially published on 13th September and updated on 26th September With the Brexit pea soup not looking any clearer whatsoever, Boris Johnson's hopes of an early general election are fading by the minute as I type this and of course Parliament being prorogued from the evening of Monday 9th September until 14th October. It's interesting to se...
When the history of Brexit is written, two primary mistakes will stand out. One was the Conservative party's decision to appoint Theresa May as its leader and the country's Prime Minister. The second was by the 27 member states of the EU. They appointed a team of EU federalist fanatics, rather than pragmatists, to negotiate our exit. They saw the n...
As I outlined in my last article, my interview with the fantastic Alice Grant, that I am researching why people support Brexit, from all different backgrounds and in this edition of The Brexit Series, I spoke to campaigner and self-proclaimed 'royal superfan' Joseph Afrane. Many of you may have seen Joseph out and about in London and especially aro...
How the Commonwealth can invigorate Brexit Britain and return the UK and her economy to the top of the world and international politics. Brexit Doom-mongers in the media and politics will have you know that once we have left the EU, the UK will be cast away, reliant on a self-obsessed US president and unable to speak with confidence in the world. H...
Over the past three or so years, us Brexiteers have been labelled with all sorts of names such as fascists and racists, among others. There is an ever-growing perception that we are all over 80, own grand estates and are on the far-right wing of the political spectrum; let me tell you we are not! I have spoken to people from all backgrou...
Today we'll know who our next Prime Minister will be, and Wednesday will see the Maybot's last PMQT before she heads off to formally resign to the Queen at Buckingham Palace on the afternoon. No matter who our next PM will be, either Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, we need to rebuild that special relationship with our closest ally, America. We'...
Having one's cake, eating it - demanding more, and eating that, has long been a feature of the EU Brexit negotiating team. A recent example of their hypocrisy is to be found in the wave of faux outrage over Boris Johnson's threat that if he became PM, he would refuse to pay the £39 billion that Brussels is demanding from us. In terms of the race fo...
Here is the fantastic Sir John Redwood MP's article first published on Brexit Central (https://brexitcentral.com/a-determined-prime-minister-can-ensure-we-are-out-of-the-eu-by-31st-october/) outlining how the right man can take us out of the EU by 31st October. For too long we have witnessed this Parliament trying to delay or dilute Brexit. T...
The backstop is illegal. When speaking with international lawyers they mention a number of difficulties that the EU will discover if they actually try to implement the backstop. The competence of the 'Withdrawal' Agreement to establish the backstop exceeds its lawful ability, it is Ultra Vires.Given indications from the President of the...
The spectre of Charlemagne (Karl der Große) has tantalised demagogues in the western part of Eurasia for centuries. The dream of recreating his short-lived empire has cost countless millions of lives. European history is littered with the shades of failed empires. The result of personal egos, they were bound to fail when the egos dimmed. The latest...
Supporters of Brexit have disagreed with each other – sometimes quite vehemently – when it comes to trade issues. Which model shall we go for? WTO? Canada? Norway? Take your pick, but you'll find someone equally committed to Brexit who will tell you that you're wrong. The focus of the Brexit debate has been trade and no one would deny that our futu...
The EU has accused one of its members, Hungary, of not upholding European Values. The EU parliament has voted to 'launch action' against the government of Viktor Orban. There are many charges, but according to Judith Sargentini, the EU parliament's rapporteur on Hungary: The main issue is that Hungarian citizens are losing out on an inclusive democ...
One remarkable feature about the EU is the degree to which national governments of the member states obey it almost without question. Ordered by the European Court of Justice to hand over large sums of their taxpayers' money to Brussels as a fine for some technical infringement of the EU treaties, they do so like lambs and virtually without questio...
There are several indicators that the US economy is doing very well at the moment. According to a recent BBC report: "The US economy grew at its fastest pace in nearly four years in the second quarter, expanding at an annualised rate of 4.1%, official figures show. The gains were driven by strong consumer spending and a surge in exports"[1] In addi...
EU Strategic Funding of Defence and Security Analysts Click here to read the research This research looks at the EU's strategic funding of defence and security analysts and groups in the UK and more widely across Europe. This has important implications for the debate in the UK over the UK's involvement in the EU's swiftly evolving defe...
Contact your Member of Parliament Theresa May has decided to pursue a policy of Brexit in name only (BRINO). This arrangement will be worse than our current membership of the European Union as we will then be a vassal state. If this policy is implemented the electoral consequences for the Conservative Party will be dire. I urge all members of...
To state that a book is important may seem a cliché, but Frank Furedi's Populism and the European Culture Wars is undoubtedly so. Using Hungary as a case study, no writer has more clearly described the predicament of national culture and identity, set against the progressive EU goal of a borderless, multicultural continent. Yet the message is unlik...
In a particular scene from one of Britain's most beloved sitcoms 'Fawlty Towers,' the main character, Basil Fawlty, spends considerable time attempting to not insult a German family but ends up doing so in spectacular fashion. This moment was forever immortalised when Basil remarks 'You started it!' to which a German guest replies 'No we did not!' ...
As geopolitical stability in Europe is threatened by an increasingly belligerent Russia, Poland must look to strengthen her economic and regional security. While the current Polish government is already working towards this goal, it will need important strategic partners with converging interests to achieve this objective. Two longstanding allies t...
There's been a lot of talk about something called PESCO and whether it breaches the Irish constitution or the concept of neutrality. What is Irish neutrality and what does the Irish constitution say about it? First there's whether Ireland takes part in activity outside of its own territory and second there's whether Ireland permits other countries...
Tuesday 20th March 2018, from 1pm - 3pm How the Brexit negotiations should be handled.The man who delivered the Estonian Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1991 to Mikhail Gorbachev, the Head of the Soviet Union, advises the UK on Brexit. Location: Committee Room 20The House of CommonsWestminster London SW1A 0AA(via the Cromwell Entran...
The thing that first drew me to being opposed to our membership of the EU in 1991 was the realisation my elected Government was not in control of our country, that authority had passed to an offshore, unelected and unaccountable body. My awakening came through a letter written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer during the terrible recession o...
The historic city of Bruges has long attracted some of the world's leaders, including Margaret Thatcher who made her famous Bruges speech at the College of Europe, which is still considered a political centre today. Bruges has so much to offer visitors, so here's why you should renew your e111 card, pack your suitcase and head to the charming city ...
The Progress Party of Norway seems set to reach a significant milestone at its national congress in May when it comes to the party's policy on the European Union.
8th March 2017
To this day the Progress Party has in fact not had a policy whether the country should join the EU or not. The party has simply had the policy that the Norwegian people should decide whether to join the bloc or not.
However, this seems about to change fundamentally in May. A Progress Party committee, tasked with drafting the party's foreign policy for the national congress, has suggested adopting the policy of rejecting EU membership. Furthermore the committee has also suggested reviewing the EEA Agreement which Norway has been a member of for almost a quarter of a century.
For those who decry the United States, its politics and political culture comes straight out of the European enlightenment and Anglo-Celtic notions of economic, religious and political liberty. The system of governance, based on classical ideas from Sparta, owes an equal amount to Lycurgus as it does to Locke. It is of European origin.
Slowly, however, just like the tectonic plates which created the Atlantic, there was a growing separation between Europe and America. In the case of the Republic of Ireland, this divide never emerged. The Irish economy was more linked to America than continental Europe. It was on the same economic cycle as the United States, that is until the Eurozone crisis. With regards to Britain, despite the best efforts of Barrack Hussein Obama, the UK and the US remain close.
There have been times when superficially there seemed to be a gulf between the EU and the USA. At times, some elements in the EU seemed to take an anti-American position. That however was just a brief period and has long since been forgotten. The close relationship that has existed between the EU and the USA goes back an extraordinary way. In some respects, the EU is the creature of the United States of America and its foreign policy. The student has become the master.
