The video above shows extracts of German Christian Democrat politicians talking about Greece. The statements are as follows: “Der Grieche hat jetzt lang genug genervt” (“The Greeks have annoyed us long enough“) – Thomas Strobl “Es gibt in Europa andere Staaten, denen es wahrscheinlich noch schlechter geht und die nicht...
Dear Angela Merkel, François Hollande, Matteo Renzi and Mariano Rajoy, dear Jeroen Dijsselbloem, Alex Stubb and Wolfgang Schäuble, dear Jean Claude Juncker, Martin Schulz and Donald Tusk, You might not sleep much tonight if the summit drags on. But sometime you will go to bed, wake up in the morning,...
Maybe it is not my place to say anything about Greece. I am not an economist, and I am not at the negotiating table. But I am tired of what I am reading – from politicians, journalists and others on blogs and Twitter – and hence I have drawn up...
Dear Alexis, dear Yanis, When Syriza emerged as the largest party at the election on 25th January I smiled. That’s the end of New Democracy and PASOK, a time to turn the page, for Greece to be able to make a new start, I thought. I bet a bunch of...
I’ve long been fascinated by the German politics, and how German politics is perceived beyond Germany. One aspect of this is how Merkel is described as the strong leader, internationally – a picture that is generally not reflected within Germany itself. For all their fascinating insight, pieces like the long...
I’ve been partner in a small Limited Liability Partnership in the UK since 2009, and since the start getting our banking right has been a bit of a headache. We have a low turnover, but issue between 50 and 70 invoices a year, and many of those are paid from...
An old article in Helsingin Sanomat about Alexander Stubb was entitled “Alex Stubb is too smart to make trouble”. That was in 2008 when he was appointed as Finland’s Foreign Minister. Now in his guise as Minister for Europe and International Trade of Finland, Stubb presented today at the World...
I was in the audience for Declan Ganley’s presentation at RUSI in London yesterday. It was one of the most interesting and civilised debates about EU matters I have attended in London in recent times. If you’re interested to hear what Ganley said the full film is here: For people...
The bottom line remains this: Greece leaving the Eurozone will have catastrophic economic consequences for Greece and the rest of the EU. That is as true now as it was a year ago. Everyone from Syriza to Juncker understands this. Here then are a few bits and pieces I have...
Take a deep breath. Step aside from your preconceptions about the UK and the EU, and your views on David Cameron, Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sakozy. I’m trying to do that when writing this blog entry. Follow the steps of the simplified conversation below, and please comment if I am...
Anyone would think – from reading the stories today on The Guardian’s website – that the UK is shaping up for some major fight with the European Union over treaty reform prior to this week’s summit. There are two problems with this. First, the agreement might not be for treaty...
In a regular government, when a Minister is struggling he or she is removed by the Prime Minister. I don’t think anyone has any doubt that the European Union is struggling to get to grips with the Eurozone / debt crisis. So who’s the fall guy? Well, so far, there...