Finance & Trade

EU Accuses MasterCard of Overcharging for Transactions

July 14, 2015

In a recent statement, the European Commission said it suspects MasterCard of artificially raising the costs of credit card transactions, thus harming consumers and retailers in the EU, in the latest example of an American company scrutinized by EU antitrust officials.
Hague: Greece Is Only Beginning of "Euro Crisis"

July 10, 2015

Former British Member of Parliament William Hague writes that the Greek financial crisis only marks the beginning of the inevitable problems initiated by the introduction of the euro throughout widely diverging economies in Europe.
Austria: UK Nuclear Plants Violate EU Rules

July 09, 2015

The Government of Austria has filed a complaint with the Court of Justice of the EU alleging that the European Commission's approval of the construction of two nuclear power plants in the UK, intended in part to offset the country's carbon emissions, violates EU commitments to support renewable energy.
EU Report Details Plans for Economic Integration

July 07, 2015

A recent report from leaders of the EU institutions outlines plans for further economic integration of the eurozone, to be completed by the year 2025, with proposed mechanisms including a common eurozone treasury and a eurozone-wide insurance scheme for banking deposits.
Lamont: EU Ideals Conflict with Democratic Sovereignty

July 06, 2015

Former UK Member of Parliament and Chancellor of the Exchequer Norman Lamont writes that the Greek financial crisis demonstrates how the "inflexible, irreversible rules of the euro" are in conflict with the principle of people as sovereign in a national democratic system.
Former Irish Minister: EU Used Undue Pressure to Force Bailout

June 26, 2015

Kevin Cardiff, head of the Irish finance ministry when the Government of Ireland accepted a "bailout" from the EU and International Monetary Fund in 2010, has stated that the EU or the European Central Bank used media briefings to undermine trust in Irish markets and pressure Ireland to accept the bailout.
Greece Eurozone Exit May Mean EU Exit

June 24, 2015

Politico reports that some legal observers have found, based on the text of the EU treaties, that if Greece defaults on its loans and must exit the eurozone, it must be forced to exit the EU as well, dealing a potential blow to the credibility of the economic bloc.
ECJ Rejects Challenge to Bond-Buying Program

June 16, 2015

Setting aside reasoning from the German Federal Constitutional Court, which referred the case, the Court of Justice of the EU ("ECJ") has rejected a challenge from a group in Germany arguing that a bond-buying program announced by the European Central Bank exceeded the institution's mandate.
Hannan: TTIP Criticism Applies to EU

June 12, 2015

UK Member of the European Parliament Daniel Hannan writes that anti-corporate arguments against the prospective Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership ("TTIP") between the EU and the US should prompt scrutiny of the EU's preference for corporations and NGOs over national sovereignty.
EU Officials Call for German Cooperation in Tax Probe

June 10, 2015

EurActiv reports that officials from the European Commission and a Member of the European Parliament are calling for full cooperation of the German Government with an EU-wide investigation of whether member states have granted special tax privileges to multinational corporations.