This post focuses on a single issue; the ideology underlying the demands for progress towards Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The evidence is drawn from the Five Presidents Report (5PR); its roadmap remains the basis for maintaining progress towards completing the Union. At no point in the 5PR can we find any rationale for EMU; … More Fixated on Union
The Adam Smith Institute has a detailed review of the EU, and the case for leaving, here. The author, Roland Smith (no relation?), dislikes the cases made by both the Leave and the Remain campaigns. He offers “a liberal case for Leave”, which is sufficiently general to be applied to any member state. “In mapping … More What might Adam Smith think?
Louis Rouanet has an interesting article on the website of the Mises Institute here. “What is Europe? It seems that no rigorous answer can be provided. Europe is not exactly a continent. It is not a political entity. It is not a united people….Europe has no founding fathers. Its birth was not orchestrated but completely … More Is EU anti-European?
The document we are commenting on here is nearly three years old but doesn’t appear to have been superseded, so we can take it as an up-to-date view from the European Commission. COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS Taking … More 2020 Vision?
Social Progress There are many views and differing priorities on how society can be improved but there are two ends to the spectrum. The first is a plan formulated to address today’s problems, intended to leap or progress rapidly towards an ideal model. The second is a process of continual tinkering to adapt to current … More Shorties-5
On its website the EU outlines, among other things, its current ten priorities for the future. Here is one of them: The Commission’s work on completing the Economic and Monetary Union builds on the Five Presidents’ Report. Here’s how the Commission sees its main policy areas under this priority: A genuine Economic Union that ensures … More They think they can do better
Reporting for the BBC, Kamal Ahmed says that Lord King, the former governor of the Bank of England, believes that the UK should be “self-confident” about leaving the European Union. He argues that there are real opportunities for economic reform and new trade deals, which means that Brexit could be successful. “I think the challenges … More King Dismisses Euro
The Economist has a collection of videos here, in one of which several worthies speculate on what would happen if, to ensure a win in the coming French presidential election, and a defeat for Marine Le Pen, the candidates had to offer to hold a referendum on France’s continuing membership of the EU. One participant … More Brexit Contagion?
It’s good to pause at the end of the year and remind ourselves of some of the fractures the UK Referendum revealed, not least between young and old. There was a clear divide between older (55+) and younger voters. Some of the youngsters seemed to think we oldies should have been disenfranchised, because: “Once again … More Older, and wiser? The old, old story
Representatives on behalf of the London School of Economics recently interviewed Joseph Stiglitz, formerly Chief Economist at the World Bank, about his book, The Euro: And its Threat to Europe. The interview is published here: His conclusion is that “The cost of keeping the Eurozone together probably exceeds the cost of breaking it up”. Here … More Euro: zone in or zone out?
This EU Won't Work 