Democracy Impacts

British PM Announces EU "Single Market" Exit

January 18, 2017

Politico reports that, in a speech this week, British Prime Minister Theresa May announced that her government's plans to depart the EU will include exiting the bloc's "single market" and parts of its customs union, which would permit the UK to control immigration from other EU countries and withdraw from the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the EU.
EU Official Signals Punitive Brexit to Prevent "Contagion"

January 18, 2017

The Irish Times reports that European Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici has labeled US President-elect Donald Trump's prediction that Brexit might cause other departures from the EU "a bad fantasy" because the "considerable" costs of the UK's departure from the EU would deter other countries from leaving.
UK Groups Seek Common Ground on Brexit Aims

January 17, 2017

A group of UK think tanks and other organizations called British Future has released a manifesto pushing for UK leaders to find common ground between the opposing sides of the UK referendum on leaving the EU by negotiating a Brexit deal that returns policy control to Britain while maintaining trade and security ties with its European neighbors.
Malta PM: ECJ Must Govern Brexit Transition Deal

January 17, 2017

The Prime Minister of Malta, Joseph Muscat, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, has stated that the UK must be subject to judgments of the Court of Justice of the EU during any post-Brexit transition deal, during which EU law would continue to apply to British businesses and citizens.
Austrian Official Seeks EU Permission on Jobs Policy

January 17, 2017

Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern has pledged that he will ask for permission from the EU institutions to allow businesses in his country to consider Austrian job candidates before they consider candidates from other EU member states.
Party Paper Shows Inflexibility on EU Membership

January 17, 2017

Reuters reports that a paper from the German Social Democratic Party would commit party leaders to a policy of not permitting the UK to negotiate membership in the EU's "single market" after Brexit unless it agrees to unrestricted migration, spotlighting the inflexibility of the bloc's politicians and leaders on market access.
Official Predicts New Eurozone Bailout of Greece

January 17, 2017

Reuters reports that Belgian Finance Minister Johan Van Overtveldt has declared that the heads of the eurozone will proceed with another bailout of Greek institutions with or without the involvement of the International Monetary Fund.
Iceland Announces Vote on EU Referendum

January 17, 2017

The newly formed coalition government of Iceland has announced that it will offer the country's Parliament a vote on whether to hold a popular referendum on joining the EU.
Lord Speaker Signals Cooperation on Brexit Law

January 17, 2017

In a recent comment article, the Speaker of the UK House of Lords, Lord Fowler, pledged that his body would not "sabotage legislation" from the elected House of Commons regarding the withdrawal of Britain from the EU, but would rather seek to "improve" any such law.
EU Proposes Scrutiny of Services Regulation

January 16, 2017

The European Commission has announced a package of initiatives aimed at completing the EU's "single market" for service providers by, in part, proposing tougher EU scrutiny of national regulations on professional services and requiring a "comprehensive and transparent proportionality test" before governments create new rules on the provision of services.