European Union

The Belgian unions are protesting against the austerity policy of the centre-right government under Prime Minister Charles Michel. Several thousand demonstrators have staged a protest in Brussels and public sector and transport services have been limited by strikes. How can the deadlock be broken?

The Nato heads of state and government will meet in Warsaw on July 7 and 8. One key item on the agenda is the Alliance's stance on Russia. But member states are far from seeing eye to eye on this point, commentators point out.

Employers can forbid employees from wearing headscarves provided they have a general ban on visible religious or ideological symbols, the advocate general of the European Court of Justice has said in a statement. Should the Court follow her recommendation?

The German parliament plans to pass a resolution on the genocide of the Armenians in 1915 and 1916. As the legal successor of the Ottoman Empire Turkey rejects the accusation of genocide and many German Turks are protesting against the parliamentary initiative and warning of the negative impact on German-Turkish relations. The European press praises the German politicians at least for their courage.

On 1 June 2016, the Council authorised, on behalf of the EU, the signature and provisional application of the economic partnership agreement (EPA) between the EU and the South African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group. The South African Development Community EPA group comprises Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland. 

The signing ceremony of the SADC-EU EPA is due to take place in Kasane (Botswana) on 10 June 2016.

The economic partnership agreements are intended to enhance regional integration and economic development in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. They are based on the principle of asymmetrical market opening, meaning that they provide a better access to the EU market for ACP partners. They notably offer unprecedented market opportunities for agricultural and fisheries products.  EPAs replace the previous market access regime of unilateral preferences for ACP countries.

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Alongside Boris Johnson’s Brexit metamorphosis, it must be the transformation of the referendum campaign. For close to a quarter-century, Britain’s control-obsessed Treasury was the EU’s most eurosceptic finance ministry. Yet in recent months it became the go-to armoury for Remain campaigners, churning out ever more harrowing economic warnings on the consequences of Brexit. Whitehall’s broody power centre saw the light – or at least the costs of leaving.

Should Britain vote to stay in the EU, eternal optimists in Brussels – and there are a few left – might take this as a positive sign. In theory, the vote should “settle this European question in British politics” – just as David Cameron promised. The europhile Treasury could lead a mini-renaissance in British EU influence. The UK’s ambitious 2017 EU presidency could press for trade deals and deepening the single market. A multi-tier EU would give Britain the reassurance it craves; London’s defensive crouch on EU policy could end. The Economist’s Bagehot outlines just such an initiative.

Many will find it hard to believe.

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