Democracy Impacts

Article: Franco-German Proposals Risk Unraveling EU

April 17, 2018

Corey Cooper of the Council on Foreign Relations writes that Franco-German proposals for accelerated centralization of policy-making in Brussels "are not based in political reality" and asserts that only "inclusive and democratic" reform, on a gradual basis, will succeed in uniting Europeans behind the EU project.
EU Legislators: Brexit Transition Must Respect Free Movement

April 16, 2018

The Independent reports that leaders of the major European Parliament political groupings have backed a motion demanding that the UK respect in full the EU's principle of freedom of movement during any post-Brexit transition period, meaning citizens of EU countries could move to the UK and potentially claim a right to remain after the transition.
EP Report Seeks Post-Brexit UK-EU Regulatory Convergence

April 16, 2018

Politico reports that Members of the European Parliament (EP) have drafted a resolution calling for the UK to accept a "binding convergence mechanism" requiring it to abide by EU rules and judgments of the Court of Justice of the EU (ECJ) as part of any comprehensive post-Brexit trade deal with the bloc.
EU Moves Toward Centralization of Wage Policies

April 16, 2018

Deutsche Welle reports that negotiators for EU member states recently agreed a set of broad principles underlying the centralization of policy for posted workers in the EU, proposing reforms that would generally require equality in wages between workers temporarily working in a country and workers who permanently reside in that country.
EU Council Outlines Roadmap Toward Military Cooperation

April 13, 2018

In March, the Council of the EU adopted an implementation roadmap for the EU's Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) agreement, a deal among 25 EU member states through which they will implement military cooperation as one of the initial steps toward the EU's planned Defence Union.
Barnier: UK Must Not "Regress" from EU Standards

April 11, 2018

The European Commission's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has called for the inclusion in any post-Brexit UK-EU deal of a "non-regression" clause that would require the UK to permanently maintain EU standards in areas such as the environment, tax, and employment.
EC Presents Action Plan on Military Mobility

April 03, 2018

As part of the body's bid to form a "Defence Union" by the year 2025, the European Commission (EC) has presented an action plan to coordinate with EU member states to improve military mobility with an aim "to tackle physical, procedural or regulatory barriers which hamper" movement by defense forces throughout the EU.
Lawmaker: UK Must Prepare for "No Deal" Brexit

March 30, 2018

UK Member of Parliament David Jones writes that, after European negotiators presented a draft withdrawal plan including the EU's "annexation" of Northern Ireland as part of a common regulatory area, Britain should no longer assume Brexit talks will come to a satisfactory deal and must begin spending money to prepare for a "no deal" scenario.
Swiss Officials Seek Broad Treaty with EU

March 29, 2018

Reuters reports that the Swiss government has announced the outlines of a new treaty it desires to strike with the EU that would include a closer bond between EU and Swiss markets and arbitration panels to resolve disputes between the jurisdictions.
MP Criticizes EU Proposal to "Dismember" Britain

March 29, 2018

The Guardian reports that British Member of Parliament and head of the euroskeptic European Research Group Jacob Rees-Mogg has argued that the EU is risking a Brexit without any withdrawal agreement with its "egregious" proposal that Northern Ireland, a country in the UK, remain part of a common regulatory area with the EU after the rest of Britain leaves the bloc.