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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.
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Bruges Group Blog

Spearheading the intellectual battle against the EU. And for new thinking in international affairs.

The Northern Irish Protocol Must Go Now

The Acts of Union is the present constitutional foundation of the United Kingdom. As the late Lord Trimble, the unionist architecture of the Belfast Agreement, said: The Acts of Union is the Union. The Northern Ireland Protocol "subjugates" (in the w...
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Jamie Bryson

The Bruges Group calls for a radical change in Conservative Party policy

Thirty years ago, twenty-three Conservative Members of Parliament voted against the Maastricht Treaty. Our main concern was that it opened the door to the abolition of the Pound and its replacement with what became the euro. Some twenty-seven years l...
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Barry Legg

Net Zero Fantasy

British politicians and mainstream media have claimed that Russia is responsible for "turning off" our gas supplies, amid hysteria over Ukraine. That's not the case, the culprit is closer to home. In late 2021, the British government paused the devel...
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Will Podmore

BARONESS THATCHER, THE GREATEST

The day of writing this article is the 16th May, which was the birthday of Bertram Edward Bennett (Bertie Bennett to all who knew him), who was my father. He was Born in the slums of Birmingham in 1915. As a young man and being a devoted socialist, h...
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Derek Bennett

The NI Protocol Bill: Breakdown

The HMS Caroline, a de-commissioner light cruiser docked at Alexandra Dock, near Belfast Harbour The Government's Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, introduced to the House by the Foreign Secretary, is a move to ameliorate the existing issues with the N...
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Christopher Lim

Moving on From EU Law – Good for the Economy, Good for Business!

By Barnabas Reynolds. The Brexit Freedoms Bill aims to end the special legal status of EU law. It will also simplify the removal of retained EU law. Here Barnabas Reynolds explains the advantages for the City – and the economy. The UK has recently be...
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Reynolds

"Tear Down This Wall": How Reagan Changed the World

Today marks 34 years since one of the most memorable and historic speeches ever made by a US President, and one that changed the course of history, it is of course when President Reagan stood in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and told Genera...
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Ethan Thoburn

Why There's No Room for Politics in Sport

There are some things in life that should never mix, pineapple and pizza, baking soda and vinegar, but perhaps more than both of those examples is sport and politics! This last year has emphasised that more than anything, from taking the knee before ...
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Ethan Thoburn

von der Leyen’s Götterdämmerung

Twilight of the Gods" was Richard Wagner's last in the cycle of music dramas called, "The Ring of Nibelung," which is based on old Norse mythology prophesying war among beings and gods that results in the burning and remaking of the world. It is alwa...
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Dr Ted Malloch

What next for the Grand Old Party?

The 2020 Presidential Election, fraught and contested as it was, is over. Joe Biden is the 46th President of the United States and commands majorities in both chambers of Congress. At first glance, things look bad for the Republicans - but scratch th...
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James

Operation Killing Brexit

A calculated campaign is underway to effectively nullify the 2016 referendum and keep the United Kingdom in the European Union for the foreseeable future. The latest development in this ongoing saga is the attempt by the Prime Minister to extend the transition period bringing it closer to the next General Election in 2022. We all remember that duri...
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Scarlett Spencer

THE ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE FOR A NO-DEAL BREXIT

Any sort of trade deal with the EU is bound to result in economic meltdown. Here's how and why.  Author: John Poynton This graph shows our Balance of Payments Current Account – in effect our national profit and loss account, comprising mainly but not exclusively of trade – split into two separate components; our trade with the EU (the red line...
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John Poynton

Democracy

Many of those who insist that the 2016 referendum was only advisory are now demanding a second referendum. If the first one was only advisory, how could a second one not be advisory too? What they mean is that pro-EU MPs and unelected pro-EU peers should make the important decisions in this country, not the uncouth British people, who can't be trus...
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  5655 Hits
Will Podmore

“We Won’t Get Fooled Again”

"Smile and grin at the change all around. Pick up my guitar and play….just like yesterday. Then I'll get on my knees and pray… we won't get fooled again" The Who (1971) "We Won't Get Fooled Again", from "Who's Next?" On 10th November I had the good fortune to attend the 'Brexit or Bust' Bruges Group Conference in London. There were some very good p...
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  6194 Hits
Dr Jonathan Swift

Perspectives on Reforming the European Union

A paper for the ECR Group of the European Parliament Brussels, Belgium by Dr. Theodore Roosevelt Malloch This commissioned paper for the ECR Group considers perspectives on European Union reform. It starts with the Treaty of Rome and considers the basis and foundation for cooperation. It then inspects the nature and challenge of reform at this time...
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  5340 Hits
Dr Ted Malloch

The Draft Withdrawal Agreement: an analysis

Analysis of Theresa May's Brexit proposal.  Can the UK claim to be an independent state? Introduction The current draft of the agreement "on Withdrawal of the UK from the EU and EURATOM" (the "Agreement") can be found here... https://ec.europa.eu/commission/files/draft-agreement-withdrawal-united-kingdom-great-britain-and-northern-ireland-euro...
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Robert Oulds

Lest We Forget

For centuries, wool was the mainstay of our economy; so vital that Edward III ordered his Lord Chancellor to sit on the woolsack. Export of raw wool financed trade and new towns. Flemish and Huguenot weavers fleeing European persecution added their skills. By the 16th century, English cloth dominated European markets. It provided the trade good use...
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  4678 Hits
Michael Wood

It’s not a People’s Vote we need – it’s a People’s Revolt

If - and that's a big if - there were a parliamentary decision in favour of a fresh referendum on the EU, how should the Leave majority respond? Let's ask recalcitrant Remainers to put themselves in our shoes. What incentive would there be to vote again? What faith could Leavers have in the system, if they overcame the odds stacked against them for...
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  8098 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Single Market

There has been a great deal of discussion about the EU's single market. The following is an extract from Chapter 2 of my recent book Brexit: the road to freedom, which I hope throws some light on the subject. Neither the British state nor the EU had ever published an assessment of the single market's effects. No trade association or business had ev...
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  6769 Hits
Will Podmore

Margin

Some in the pro-EU camp claim that the margin of the pro-independence camp's victory was too narrow to be valid. But as Paddy Ashdown said on the evening of the referendum, I will forgive no one who does not respect the sovereign voice of the British people once it has spoken, whether it is a majority of one per cent or twenty per cent. When the Br...
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Will Podmore

Irish Border Issue

The EU's backstop is not an insurance policy but a trap (Roger Kendrick in BrexitCentral, 22 October.) "The backstop is not an insurance policy which will never be needed or used. It is an ingenious device developed by the EU to create a comprehensive lock on the future trade and regulatory policy of the UK thereby ensuring that the UK would be und...
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  4966 Hits
Will Podmore

Binding

Oddly, many who insist that the 2016 referendum was only advisory are now calling for a second referendum, for a 'People's Vote'. If the first one was only advisory, how could a second one not be advisory too? What they mean is that pro-EU MPs and unelected pro-EU peers should make the important decisions in this country, not the uncouth British pe...
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  4267 Hits
Will Podmore

Beer and sovereignty: similar stories of stolen identity

Anyone remember Watney's Red Barrel? This ubiquitous, tasteless brew was a product of the overhaul of the British brewing industry in the 1960s and 70s, as the plethora of local breweries steeped in heritage were systematically bought out by the 'Big Six' of Bass Charrington, Whitbread, Watney Mann, Scottish & Newcastle, Allied and Courage. Up ...
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  3630 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Unlocking closed minds

Between the huffing, puffing and wheezing as a group of us old farts peddle away on our stationary bikes in the gym, there is often a lot of banter, especially taking the micky about the football teams each of the chaps support.The reason we are all there at the Heartcare gym is due to all of us having various heart problems or, as in my case, suff...
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  4166 Hits
Derek Bennett

“Gimme Some Truth”

"I've had enough of reading things By neurotic psychotic pigheaded politicians All I want is the truth, just give me some truth." John Lennon: "Gimme Some Truth." From Imagine (1971) 'Truth' about Brexit 'Truth' is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) as: 'The quality or state of being true', or as: 'A fact or belief that is accepted as t...
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Dr Jonathan Swift

Brexit must mean a clean break militarily

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...
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  7847 Hits
Ariane Loening

Spanner in the Brexit works

In the context of Brexit, things would be so much tidier if it wasn't for Northern Ireland. The province not only obstinately voted Remain, but also inconveniently promises to bring with it a new, uniquely porous, EU land border. If somehow one could leave Northern Ireland as a member of the EU and have the frontier redrawn in the Irish Sea, life w...
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  4798 Hits
Andrew Tettenborn

The Extreme Middle and a New Theocracy

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...
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  6593 Hits
Michael Wood

Brexit update videos

Steve Baker MP presents five videos updating Brexit and explaining its significance:  1 - Self-government and trade 2 - The Withdrawal Agreement 3 - What is possible: the internal market vs a Free Trade Agreement  4 - What's wrong with Chequers, the Government's plan?  5 - It is time to make an advanced FTA work for the who...
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  5310 Hits
Ariane Loening

Cultural Marxists don't like being called Cultural Marxists

The phenomenon of fake news has become a major story in itself. CNN constantly dishing the dirt on Donald Trump with no pretence of impartiality; the Guardian blaming Russian interference for Brexit; conspiracy theories abound. Economy of truth and sensationalism are not new, but undoubtedly the problem has worsened with the internet, which has spa...
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  5166 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Addressing the Revolutions

The politics of Europe is such that we have in past centuries witnessed many revolutions of the kind which lead to conflicts.Today, once more, under the "leadership" of the EU we are witnessing another test.The British in their caution and concern are stepping away from the EU in the hope that Brexit will mitigate the creation of the Grand EU monoc...
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  7663 Hits
Ralph Baldwin

Address to the Bruges Group by the Rt. Hon. Priti Patel MP to mark the 30th Anniversary of Margaret Thatcher`s Bruges Speech

Celebrate Margaret Thatcher at the 30th Anniversary Dinner  It is a tremendous privilege to be able to address the Bruges Group today. Your work over the years has done so much to ensure that the Brexit vote happened, giving us the opportunity today to build better future outside the European Union. So I want to pay tribute to everyone at the ...
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  6052 Hits
Ariane Loening

Independent-thinking in Poland

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...
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  6406 Hits
Andrew Tettenborn

Could Brexit Effect My PPI Claim?

Although the future of Britain after Brexit still remains uncertain, there is plenty that can be done to ensure that you are ahead of the game when it comes to claiming back PPI. Here we are going to go through some of the top tips as to whether or not PPI will be affected by Brexit and how you can prevent it. What Does Brexit Mean For Banking? To ...
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  4158 Hits
John Smith

Stop the Sun: the EU is re-issuing Pravda for the proles

Mass media, according to a letter sent to the government of Poland, 'are the property of the whole human family. Everybody has a right to use them'.This was not a complaint to the allegedly dictatorial Law & Justice party of today, but to the bluntly oppressive communist regime in 1978. The bishops of that traditionally Christian land, whose pe...
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  5435 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Speech by the Bruges Group’s Dr Carl Hunter to the Conservative Foreign & Commonwealth Council

Your Royal Highness, your Excellencies, Chairman, my Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen. Good afternoon. I wish to thank the Chairman and Ms Melissa Crawshay-Williams for their kind introduction and to congratulate and thank the members of our Council for their kindness, courtesy and professionalism in arranging this event. I wish to speak of the changing...
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  8891 Hits
Hunter

Do you expect us to negotiate?

"Do you expect me to talk?" "No, Mr.Bond. I expect you to die" (1) In a book published in June of this year (Swift, 2018a) and a blog the following month, (Swift 2018b), I predicted that reaching a mutually-beneficial accord with the EU would be very difficult, if not impossible, as they have no desire to come to any form of agreement with us, havi...
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  7650 Hits
Dr Jonathan Swift

Celebrating Margaret Thatcher's Bruges Speech

Click here to read the speech  On 20th September 1988 Lady Thatcher made her seminal Bruges Speech. As Prime Minister famously said to the College of Europe in Bruges; "We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers of the state in Britain, only to see them reimposed at a European level, with a European super state exercising a new dominan...
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  8815 Hits
Robert Oulds

Perfect timing by the European Union

The way in which the EU goes about producing the laws that bind the rest of us - whether our politicians like them or not - can be difficult to understand. If you're not intimately familiar with it, don't worry. You're in good company. If really interested, you'll find it in Arts.288-299 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, a tur...
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  5919 Hits
Andrew Tettenborn

Outsourcing and the Death of Democracy

In 1989, events that led to the fall of the USSR overshadowed one that arguably would have an even greater economic, cultural and political impact. According to Poole College of Management, outsourcing was formally identified as a business strategy that year. The collapse of Carillon in January 2018, the loss of thousands of jobs and billions of po...
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  7311 Hits
Michael Wood

The Brexit Game Changer – Import Excess Tax

 A policy model for a clean Brexit - no queues at Dover, no Irish hard border Membership of the EU Customs Union and the (largely contrived) Irish border issue are once more on the front pages. After success in the Lords, Remainers smell blood and are slavering at the prospect of defeating the Government in forthcoming Commons votes. Given thi...
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  7913 Hits
David Owen

Trump should prove his commitment to free trade with a UK-US Free Trade deal

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...
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Gary Robinson

Prospects of a cheaper post-Brexit pint

The price of a pint is stretching the working man's wallet too far. The results of excessive taxation are plain to see, with more and more pubs closing down and replaced by flats, a convenience store or an Islamic centre. These metamorphoses are a sign of the times: the rising population (with particular growth of largely teetotal Muslim communitie...
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  4834 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Medical provisions post-Brexit

  A report by Victoria Hewson, Senior Counsel of the IEA's International Trade and Competition Unit There are three main factors behind the fears in relation to medical provisions post-Brexit. Here we examine what the potential problems are and the available solutions: 1. New tariffs would raise prices It has been suggested that the prices of ...
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  8207 Hits
Ariane Loening

Jacob Rees-Mogg's letter to the Conservative Party constituent Chairmen with Briefing Note concerning the Chequers Deal

Letter to Conservative Party Constituency Chairmen House of Commons Westminster London SWlA 0AA 22 August 2018 Dear Chairmen, When the British people voted to leave the EU over two years ago it was an act of great political courage against the prophets of doom. 17 million people voted to leave because they believed in better. They believe in Britai...
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  5297 Hits
Ariane Loening

Genoa and Grenfell disasters: a common thread of guilt

In the aftermath of both the Genoa bridge collapse and the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, left-wing politicians and media were quick to scandalise their political opponents, ranging from sociological critique of callous capitalism to blunt reference to the 'fascist' Italian government or a Tory cull of the poor. Coverage of the Genoa calamity in the ...
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Dr Niall McCrae

An Acute Outbreak of Moralitis

The 'silly season', they call it - when Parliament has closed for the summer holidays, and the newspapers scramble for titbits. Last week the media pounced on a commentary by the recently-resigned Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, the flaxen-haired politician pretending to be an essayist (or is it the other way round?). Don't ban the burqa, Boris wr...
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  5241 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Political Economics in the USSR and EU

Since the late 1970s, I had been travelling and doing business in the Soviet bloc and USSR. Soon after its collapse, I was working for a German company, responsible for its major interests in Ukraine and development in Central Asia. The fall of the USSR was sudden and to the ill informed, unexpected. Those of us who knew it, had wondered for years ...
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  4607 Hits
Michael Wood

Meltdown in Turkey - an omen for the Euro

Gresham was a 17th century banker and trader, after whom Greshams, the North Norfolk Public school is named. Mr Gresham is most famous for 'Gresham's law' which states that, 'Bad money drives out good.' In Gresham's time of coins, it meant that, one would always spend a 'fake' coin or one with less precious metal content and keep the good ones; a b...
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  5005 Hits
Catherine Blaiklock

The IEA essay prize is looking at the wrong side of the housing equation.

This week, it was announced to big fanfare that: 'The UK's worsening housing crisis has led the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) to set up a £50,000 prize for anyone who can solve it – with Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg as judge.' https://twitter.com/iealondon/status/1021311057426608128 'Competitors are being asked to propose a single policy i...
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  4836 Hits
Catherine Blaiklock

EU Militia on British Streets?

Of course the mere idea of armed foreign militias patrolling British streets sounds outlandish and is usually rejected by most Brits as absurd and impossible. However, let us consider the matter more closely. The EU's plan to eventually morph into a single European State was proclaimed openly by the founders, and even later by the likes of Helmut K...
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  37673 Hits
Torquil Dick-Erikson

The Impact Of Brexit On The Finance Industry

As the Brexit talks continue to escalate, so too does the effect that Brexit is having on the finance industry. With many hesitant to take out short and long-term loans, the finance industry has experienced a slight slump that is slowly beginning to improve. Here, we're taking a closer look at the impact of Brexit on the financial sector. Effects O...
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  4820 Hits
John Smith

Why the European Arrest Warrant is a threat to our democracy

Two things that are not generally knnow about the European Arrest Warrant, and how it could be struck down... https://savebritishjustice.wordpress.com/2018/06/27/two-things-that-are-not-generally-known-about-the-european-arrest-warrant-and-how-it-could-be-struck-down/ 1. People do not realise how profoundly different the systems of criminal law use...
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  12228 Hits
Torquil Dick-Erikson

Think Tanks and Maginot Lines

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...
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  21480 Hits
Dr Lee Rotherham

Threatening his Lordship’s lifestyle

When Peter Mandelson was in the Labour Government and later a highly paid EU Commissioner, I was struggling running the small family business my late father had started in 1946. We just about survived the recession of the early nineties caused by the folly of the UK joining the EU exchange rate mechanism, which bankrupted a large number of small bu...
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  4586 Hits
Derek Bennett

Representative democracy not bureaucratic dictatorship

In a democracy, the principle of accountability holds that government officials — whether elected or appointed by those who have been elected — are responsible to the people for their decisions and actions. The Foreign Office file FCO 30/1048 is entitled LEGAL & CONSTITUTIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF ENTRY OF UK INTO EEC. It is stamped '1971' and marke...
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  10051 Hits
Ian Geering QC

The plea of an Elector to our own House of Commons

The principle of conformity to the will of the nation is always to be obeyed. That is the very foundation of our constitution. Parliament decided in 2015 that the only way to ascertain the will of the nation - as to whether the nation should leave or remain in the European Union - was to ask the electors a single question posing a binary choice. Ac...
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  4493 Hits
Ian Geering QC

Electronic Customs Procedures and Brexit

Theresa May's dismissal of Boris Johnson's suggestion that technology could allow customs checks without physical infrastructure (to solve the Irish border issue) is perverse. Her claim that such systems do not yet exist is not true and one must query if Number 10 talks to anyone other than the Treasury. The UK was a pioneer of electronic clearance...
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  6741 Hits
Michael Wood

EU Commission COM (2018) 556 Final document

On July 19th, the EU Commission published the COM (2018) 556 Final document that sets out advice for the remaining 27 Member States on how to prepare 'for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union on 30 March 2019' https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/communication-preparing-withdrawal-brexit-preparedness.pdf Many Brexiteer...
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  4896 Hits
Ariane Loening

CANZUK – a new alliance for the 21st Century

Seizing the opportunity Speaking in London in April this year, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said: '…the reality is all of that; you could not find two countries more close in every respect; family, culture, history and values. You know Australia was the sole country outside of NATO and the EU that expelled Russian diplomats in respons...
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Gary Robinson

From covert to overt treachery: the Cambridge Spy Ring and pro-EU civil servants

What is meant by treachery, and is it applicable to our establishment's sell-out to the EU? Conservative party members have been using the term about their leader Theresa May. Also implicated is the head civil servant of the Cabinet Office Europe Unit, Olly Robbins. Arguably, Robbins has been entreating to a foreign power, and is thus guilty of mis...
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  13588 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

The Politics of Prestidigitation

Magicians never reveal their secrets, but we all know that magic lies in the distraction of one's attention. This is exactly what the politics of prestidigitation is all about. Since Emmanuel Macron's coronation at the helm of the French state, we have never heard the French make as much noise as now.This former banker has mastered the art of showm...
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  5083 Hits
Scarlett Spencer

Mrs May’s ‘Scrap of Paper’: will it be ‘Peace for our time’?

A 'scrap of paper' was how the German Chancellor famously dismissed the Treaty of London (19th April, 1839), in which Britain, France, Germany, Austria and Russia all agreed to recognise the existence, neutrality and sovereignty of the newly – formed country of Belgium. "Peace for our time" was what PM Neville Chamberlain promised Britain, after me...
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  5217 Hits
Dr Jonathan Swift

THE CHEQUERS CONCLUSION - Briefing Memo by Martin Howe QC

​Martin Howe QC's analysis of the government's proposals for negotiating Brexit makes it quite clear that Brexit does not mean Brexit. 1. This memo is based on the press statement issued by the government on 6 July 2018, which lacks details in a number of key areas. However, some important conclusions can be drawn very clearly. Para 4(a): the "comm...
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  5363 Hits
Ariane Loening

Brexit: an urgent appeal to Tory MPs

 A comfort zone gives the comforted a false sense of safety. For now, it would be quite possible to carry on as if nothing significant has changed: assuring messages from Conservative Party HQ; 'crisis – what crisis' coverage on the BBC or comment pages of the Times; social media bubbles where agreeable opinions are heard. But believe us at th...
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  5530 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

Statement by Barry Legg - Chairman of the Bruges Group

 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...
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  24656 Hits
Barry Legg

Populism is popular, and will overwhelm the EU

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...
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  4631 Hits
Dr Niall McCrae

There is only one way out of the European Union

We voted to leave the European Union on 23rd June 2016 and technically – even politically - it should be as easy as it was when we first joined what was then called the European Economic Community in 1973. However, the context has evolved and the European Union has no intention to let the United Kingdom leave its superstructure thus relying on an i...
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  5722 Hits
Scarlett Spencer

Save the Oceans Stop recycling plastic - Executive summary

Save the Oceans Stop recycling plastic by Dr.Mikko Punio is published by  the Global Warming Policy Foundation and can be read in its entirety on the GWPF website. (See below) A marine plastic litter crisis has been declared and the mass media around the world has given their front pages over to the story for a while now. The European Union – ...
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  4791 Hits
Ariane Loening

British government's answer not good enough

The British Government says that the case is closed on Poland's right to war reparations from Germany. This fails to acknowledge the true legal position and fails to do justice to our relationship with Poland. It is my strong belief that the UK's departure from the European Union presents the perfect opportunity for Global Britain to show its stren...
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  5028 Hits
Daniel Kawczynski MP

Solving the Irish border question

Like a broken clock, remainers are occasionally right. One example of this is the Irish border question which many leavers have ignored or dismissed for too long. While we don't believe this issue is as impossible to solve as remainers insist, it does require an appropriate amount of attention. So far, different proposals have been suggested to avo...
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  7189 Hits
Robert Oulds

Brexit good for business? Robert Oulds debates with New Labour MP Alison McGovern on Sky News

Robert Oulds and Alison McGovern MP debate Brexit and its effects on British business. Robert made it clear that there are many positives which will deliver favourable outcomes to Brexit for businesses, including access to markets around the world which would boost productivity and the economy. For businesses dealing with the EU and experiencing un...
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  4753 Hits
Ariane Loening

Is the Euro going to collapse?

The Euro is a currency. That would seem blindingly obvious, but it means that there are two ways in which the Euro could collapse and one way in which it could get massively stronger. A currency is not just a means of exchange for goods and services within a country, it is also an asset that has a shifting value against other currencies, that is, t...
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  9663 Hits
Catherine Blaiklock

Robert Oulds discusses Airbus and BMW's Brexit warnings, the economy and whether or not there should be another EU referendum

On the second anniversary of the successful Leave vote, Robert Oulds condemns Airbus, in receipt of £16 billion from the EU, and BMW, for choosing this day to advise the UK to stay in the single market and customs union. While the eurozone lurches from crisis to crisis, the UK has its highest rate of employment in history and we should look forward...
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  4918 Hits
Ariane Loening

Robert Oulds discusses immigration, Brexit and the EU on Sky News

 On the day preceding the second anniversary of the pro-Brexit vote, Robert Oulds discusses why the Leave vote was successful, one reason being voters knew the UK needs to have control over its borders but being part of the EU denies this.Powerful EU leaders, in particular Chancellor Merkel of Germany, encouraged immigration from outside the E...
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  6436 Hits
Ariane Loening

Two years on from the EU referendum victory

Robert Oulds of the Bruges Group in conversation with Dr Niall McCrae of Kings College London on the second anniversary of the EU referendum victory.  Discussing how the people's majority decision to leave the European Union is being carried out by our elected representatives, Robert Oulds predicts increasing disillusionment with politics by p...
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  5423 Hits
Ariane Loening

Go Now: Call Brussels’ Bluff Leave the EU immediately and without a deal

1. Introduction Despite Phillip Lee's last minute betrayal of the government, the House of Lord's amendment to the EU Withdrawal Bill was defeated by twenty-six votes on 12th June. Whilst there is doubtless some celebrating, Mrs May is still not out of danger – in fact, the dissention amongst a number of Conservatives would appear to be growing. Th...
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  6067 Hits
Dr Jonathan Swift

The EU’s influence on UK energy policy

The demand to reduce carbon dioxide emissions imposed by UK and Scottish climate legislation has resulted in crazy energy policies, damage to industrial production and increased fuel bills, and as the EU Withdrawal Bill works its way through Parliament, it would be useful to unravel and analyse some of the historical influence of the EU prior to th...
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Ariane Loening

Dragi doesn’t understand how the bond markets are dangerous

Author:CATHERINE BLAIKLOCK Would you like to lend to the German government and get paid a grand total of 0.43% a year for 10 years? Or how about lending to the French government and getting 0.73% or to the Spanish government at 1.35%? An annual yield of 1.35% a year, lending to Spain and you are invested for 10 years. Doesn't sound very good, does ...
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Catherine Blaiklock

Brexit: Same goals; different paths - Managing divergence

On the 5th of December 2017 the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis MP (speaking in a House of Commons debate) said: "She [The Prime Minister] said that there are areas in which we want to achieve the same outcomes, but by different regulatory methods. We want to maintain safety, food standards, animal welfare and employme...
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Ariane Loening

A test of your EU compliance

 Two rallies in London couldn't more starkly contrast the class divide in Britain. I was at the #FreeTommy demonstration on 9th June, a massive gathering in support of the jailed campaigner against child rape gangs. Legions of mostly white working-class blokes with a cause celebre. Inevitably a boorish element provided the material for damning...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Using Brexit for a Corbyn government.

The first thing we must do in examining the weakness of our government's current negotiating strategy is to look at the reality of the strength of our position as a nation. The first thing that everyone in Britain should know is the reason for this figure of 40 billion that we have agreed to pay to the EU. We do not owe them this money, in fact, we...
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Daniel Mcilhiney

Twitter, war reparations and my family history

It may have come to the attention of some people that a recent tweet of mine created something of a heated debate. The tweet in question concerned the Foreign Office waiving war compensation rights following the reunification of Germany. I have also raised this issue in Parliament in the form of a written question and was shocked to find that Great...
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Daniel Kawczynski MP

Why we must remain steadfast in our Brexit negotiations

Today Great Britain stands at a crossroads; it is here where we must decide whether we will stand strong and boldly go forward or whether we will cower before a group of unelected bureaucrats thrust out from power in their home countries. Our Brexit negotiations have featured heavily in the news recently over the Government's supposed plan to stay ...
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Daniel Kawczynski MP

The time has come to take a tougher stance with Germany

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!' ...
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Daniel Kawczynski MP

Strengthening Alliances: How Poland should look to an Atlantic partnership with the US and the UK

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...
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Daniel Kawczynski MP

Day for Freedom: reclaiming the right to free speech

The Day for Freedom, in London on 6th May, was a showcase of characters I have followed and featured in my articles: for example, Milo and Sargon of Akkad. So I didn't want to miss it. Sadly, this invigorating and necessary event was either ignored by the mainstream media, or described by the contemptuous Guardian as a 'far-right rally'. Certainly ...
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Dr Niall McCrae

‘Peak Guardian’: banish the uneducated from the polling stations

Never underestimate the talent of Remain in scoring own-goals. Tony Blair claiming to be the rebel with a cause; Lord Adonis accusing the BBC of Brexit bias (cough, splutter); and Ian McEwan urging a second referendum because the stubborn oldies will soon be dead. These anti-democrats pollute the airwaves with their verbal farts, but as opinion pol...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Threat of Transition Period to UK Fishing Industry

When all is said and done, the Brexit negotiations can and should leave Britain in a favorable position. Britons voted to leave so that British policy could reflect its own interests, rather than that of Brussels and the European Union. Specifically, Britain's departure from the EU had the potential to enable a regaining of control of precious...
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Isabel Brooke

The Euro’s Battle for Survival

 Entering the Red Zone In this paper, Bob Lyddon explores the various caveats and consequences of the Eurozone's survival and continuation, and discusses the UK's role in or alongside the Eurosystem post-Brexit. As an expert in international banking, Lyddon works through his own consultancy company, Lyddon Consulting Services, and has written ...
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Isabel Brooke

Brexit and Beyond

John Kerr set about penning Article 50 in the early 2000's. The initial draft was subsequently changed due to elections in France and elsewhere providing a curved ball that Brussels had not anticipated. However, in 2009 – 7 long years before the EU referendum vote in the UK – The Lisbon Treaty was signed and Article 50 was brought into European law...
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James Coghlan

Sargon of Akkad: crusading for liberty from EU group-think

How can the younger generations be enticed away from the group-think that defines the EU as a paragon of virtue? They won't be persuaded by Leave-supporting politicians or mainstream media, but they might listen to Sargon of Akkad. This is the YouTuber from Swindon, real name Carl Benjamin, who has taken his cyber-sword to the stifling so-called 'p...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Viktor Orbán, Fidesz, and the EU

​ The recent Hungarian elections on 8 April found incumbent Viktor Orban of the Fidesz party in office for a third consecutive term. He has served as Prime Minister since 2010, as well as from 1998 to 2002. Fidesz is a nationalist party, and Orban's relationship with Brussels and the European Union is historically strained, as many of his policies ...
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Isabel Brooke

Robert Oulds, Vicky Pryce debate Brexit fears

At one year out from Brexit, Bruges Group Director Robert Oulds discussed UK economics, the Northern Ireland border, and trade with Chief Economic Advisor of the Centre for Economics and Business Research Vicky Pryce on TRT World. Interviewer Mobin Nasir highlighted the uncertainty in these areas, and suggested that economic statistics are signs of...
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Isabel Brooke

'Protectionism': an elitist meme to silence the plebs

A humiliation worse than Suez, warns Jacob Rees Mogg. He was referring to the transition deal with the EU, which does not return a single power to Britain as we officially leave the EU in March next year. He could have used the same phrase for the passport fiasco, as our leaders have awarded the contract to a Dutch-French company instead of a respe...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Igor Gräzin addresses Bruges Group, 20th March 2018

On 20th March 2018, Member of the Estonian Parliament Igor Gräzin addressed the Bruges Group in the House of Commons. Born 27th June 1952 in Tartu, Gräzin is an Estonian politician. He is serving as a Member of Parliament in Riigikogu, the Estonian Parliament, and won another term in the 2011 parliamentary election. Gräzin is a charter member ...
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Isabel Brooke

BBC: The Big Questions Debate

Should the people have the final say on the Brexit deal?​ Three leave campaigners, Chloe Westley of TaxPayers' Alliance, Tom Slater of Spiked, and Bruges Group Director Robert Oulds debated the question of a second referendum on BBC's The Big Questions with Nicky Campell on Sunday 18 March. Advocating for a second referendum was Eloise Todd of Best...
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Isabel Brooke

Brexit the Opera: Gutted in Grimsby

On a grey winter day in 1972, Air Force One touched down on Chinese soil. Although little tangible benefit came of President Nixon's surprise visit to Chairman Mao and the impenetrable communist state, it was one of the most theatrical acts of diplomacy in modern history. And it was recognised in the opera 'Nixon in China' by John Adams. Perhaps Ad...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Ireland and EU Defence Integration

​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...
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David Banks

Borderline Sanity

​Author: Marcus Watney ​Source: The feasibility of using technology to avoid a hard Irish border has been confirmed by Lars Karlsson in his excellent study for the European Parliament Smart Border 2.0, published in November 2017. It is available here: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2017/596828/IPOL_STU%282017%29596828_EN.pdf Reso...
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Marcus Watney

Ways To Make European Travel Easier After Brexit

In the midst of Brexit uncertainty, booking a European holiday has become even more confusing for Brits. As if planning and booking a holiday wasn't stressful enough, UK residents now have to completely revise their usual holiday strategy in order to ensure it doesn't collide with new Brexit negotiations. While Brexit has already proved to affect m...
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Isabel Brooke

Brexit Compared: Estonia regains independence and USSR falls

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...
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Robert Oulds

Remainers cannot remain: they must persuade Brits to rejoin

Leavers often wonder whether a Remain win would have aroused anything like the rancour and resistance we are experiencing today. So here's another scenario, as a thought experiment. After a 52-48 verdict to stay in the EU, Cameron's government is riven with internal conflict. A snap election is called, UKIP gets enough votes to hand dozens of seats...
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Dr Niall McCrae

Labour won't win the next election by turning its back on Brexit

​British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn recently laid out his party's official stance on Brexit. Notably, he announced Labour's commitment for the UK to join the EU in a customs union following the Brexit implementation period. Not only does this stance contravene important aspects of Brexit, but it means the party is turning its back on million...
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Isabel Brooke

Martin Selmayr – the EU’s puppet master secures his future

​Jean-Claude Juncker's most senior henchman, Martin Selmayr, has secured his post-Juncker future as the head of the EU Commission's civil service. This is not promotion, only continuity: he has long been the EU Commission's most powerful figure, as well as the link to German policymakers and the real puppet-master of the Brexit talks. A rare spotli...
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David Banks

Lobby Your MP: EU Control Over UK Defence

​The UK has continued to enter defence agreements with the European Union following the 2016 referendum, ensuring that the UK will remain closely bound to the EU. The EU, in fact, has been pursuing the establishment of an 'EU Defence Union' to include the UK even after Britain leaves the EU. Send an email to your MP to call for a full Brexit for de...
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Isabel Brooke

Remain professor 2, Leave lecturer 1 (but a moral victory for Brexit)

​For a Brexit-supporting minority in academe, here is an illustration of what we're up against. Last year I was invited by the editor of International Journal of Nursing Studies to write a commentary on Brexit and the NHS. This would be published alongside a staunchly anti-Brexit argument, by Professor Martin McKee of the London School of Hygiene &...
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Dr Niall McCrae

May, Munich, and Military Structures

Theresa May's Munich speech suggests UK's continued involvement in EU security structures post-Brexit Author: David Wilkinson Never mind the £350m on the NHS, the fundamental promises of Leave have just been betrayed. Saturday 17th February 2018 will be remembered as the date when all hope, all pretence, that Theresa May had any intention, let alon...
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David Wilkinson

Robert Oulds vs Eloise Todd: A Brexit Debate

​Bruges Group Director Robert Oulds appeared on Sky News today during the All Out Politics programme with Adam Boulton. In light of Boris Johnson's speech yesterday, 14th February, Mr Oulds debated Eloise Todd of Best for Britain on the economics of Brexit and the legitimacy of a second referendum. Describing Todd's warnings of a jobs exodus as "Pr...
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Isabel Brooke

Britain's Standing up for Bombardier

A post-Brexit industrial strategy: putting employment in Britain at the heart of economic policy.​​ Boeing's threats to jobs in the UK The US International Trade Commission's recent unexpectedly 4-0 unanimous decision against Boeing has put all eyes on the aerospace giant's next steps.1 Boeing, however, has suspended taking action pending the ITC's...
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Isabel Brooke
       
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