Last Friday, Theresa May, the British Prime Minister, said from China, where she was on official visit, that in seven weeks she will have a Brexit transition deal with the EU. Surely, nobody believes her. The reason is that her Tory governing party is so deeply split over the Brexit terms, up to the point […]
Disintegrating Tories will void May’s pledge for Brexit deal in seven weeks
Brexit: The Conservative Party drives the UK and Europe to a perilous road
The Tories, the governing party of Britain is falling apart, being deeply divided about the kind of Brexit their country should pursue. It’s not the disastrous political circumstances of Prime Minister Theresa May that blocks the negotiations with the European Union, but the chaos dividing the hard Brexiteers from their colleagues preferring a smooth partition […]
Solitary Britain sides with US aggressing Russia and chooses hard Brexit
Last Sunday Britain surprised Europe by surpassing even the Americans in condemning and threatening Russia over the fight of Aleppo, imminent to be lost for the West. British Foreign minister Boris Johnson went past the US Secretary of State John Kerry, in pointing a finger at Russia. While Kerry threatened Moscow with more economic sanctions, […]
Is there a de facto impossibility for the Brexit to kick-start?
Quite understandably, the European Union leaders including of course the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the French President Francois Hollande and the EU Commission leader Jean-Claude Juncker, want a swift and stern Brexit. The reports about a Franco-German split, with a fictitious Berlin tolerance and the Paris harshness, do not hold water. The France-Germany axis must […]
EU revengefully shows no mercy to Cameron by demanding a fast and sloppy Brexit now
One of the most historicals EU summits is taking place today in Brussels with 27 instead of 28 member states attending the meeting, leaving Britain and David Cameron out due to the recent decision of the British people to vote in favor of leaving the European Union. The EU referendum has caused severe consequences not only to […]
Brexit: when the hubris of one man can set the UK, the EU and the entire world on fire
This article was exclusively written for the Sting by Mr Panos Katsampanis, PhD candidate in European Studies at King’s College London University who focuses his political psychology research on voting behaviour at EU referendums. What started as a long shot promise back in 2013, when David Cameron committed to an EU Referendum sometime before 2017, if elected at May […]
The UK referendum has already damaged Europe: even a ‘remain’ result is not without cost to Britain and the EU
The adult Brits are deciding today about their country’s position in or out the European Union, in a referendum that Prime Minister David Cameron was forced by his party’s ultra-Eurosceptics in January 2013 to promise to conduct it, should the Conservative Party win a majority in the 2015 legislative election. This promise was then thought […]
Why does the whole world want Britain to stay in the EU?
Foreign leaders, countries, international bodies and major world entities of any kind are supporting the ‘stay’ option for Britain ahead of 23 June referendum, about the country’s position in or out of the European Union. The American President Barack Obama and the Chinese and the Indian governments have expressly supported the ‘stay’ option, to mention […]
The EU checks the multinationals for tax fraud but Britain may sail out of the EU via Panama
The Panama Papers did not offer to the world community much more news than most people already knew. For example, the ‘revelation’ that a close friend to the Russian President Vladimir Putin was enormously rich without having labored for his wealth, is no news at all. Every Russian or informed citizen in the entire world […]
Will Cameron succeed in keeping UK inside the EU and reverse the present economic downturn?
Markit released yesterday its Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) Services Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) which rose to 53.7 in March showing that the UK services growth has only slightly increased compared to February’s 52.7. Also, the first quarter of this year was characterized by Markit analysts as the weakest in terms of output […]
What little Cameron got in Brussels seems enough to keep Britain in the EU
Even since 18 January this newspaper was convinced that David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, was ready to campaign for his country to remain in the European Union. A few days later, the European Sting prediction was more or less confirmed by Cameron’s speech delivered at the Davos World Economic Forum on January 21, where he […]
WEF Davos 2016 LIVE: Cameron corroborates that Britain should remain in the EU
Some days ago and more precisely on 18 January, this newspaper argued that David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, readies to support the ‘yes’ side for his country’s position in or out the EU in the referendum. Yesterday afternoon he actually confirmed this with a speech at the Davos WEF. Having recited the four conditions […]
The 28 EU leaders unable to start a relevant debate on migration and Brexit
The poor results of last week’s meeting of the 28 EU leaders are reflected in the triviality of the remarks by the Council President Donald Tusk, in summarizing the outcome of the 17 – 18 December gathering in Brussels. His most vivid comment was about the “hard work done and the extreme efficiency of the […]
David Cameron’s formal letter/threat that officially opens pandora’s box for the UK
One of the most ambitious promises UK’s Prime Minister David Cameron made during the last years was to hold a referendum on the UK’s relationship with the European Union. But after some time in which the attention was being dragged away by some major evolutions in the news agenda like the escalation of the migrants crisis or the […]
“We are in Europe, but not of it”, from Churchill to Cameron: British Exceptionalism now threatens the entire EU Edifice
It all began back in January 2013 when one ambitious politician promised the world in order to get elected. Once elected, chaos reigned when he realised that his promise is hard to accomplish. While this is the life’s story of most career politicians in this world, for David Cameron things just seem to have turned too complicated recently. […]
EU migrant crisis: Germany, France and UK to show the way. Will the rest of the EU follow?
The recent migrant crisis keeps on plaguing Europe and our good EU leaders and officials strive to find solutions to tackle it. Jean Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission (EC), will present today his plans for sharing asylum seekers among the 28 EU countries. It will be a crucial day for Juncker’s Commission because […]
The hostilities in south and eastern Ukraine resume; where could they lead?
The resumption of hostilities in south-eastern Ukraine is blamed by the West to the Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moscow reportedly wants to help the pro-Russian separatists who prevail in the Luhansk and Donetsk region to gain control of Mariupol a key port in this area on the Black Sea. However, the heavy fighting that took […]
On Brexit: the outcome of UK elections next May to be based on false promises?
The British elections that will take place on 7 May will show whether UK’s relationship with the European Union is about to change dramatically or not. Britain has always been seeking to have a different and more privileged approach in comparison to the rest of the EU member states and now is even proposing to hold a referendum with […]
From Grexit to Brexit: UK industry now says the in/out referendum is good for your health
So it is like this. In politics you need to be a sheer opportunist. You have to grab every inch of opportunity available to polarise your electorate and get your message through. Britain’s Prime Minister Cameron, an old fox in UK politics, knows how to do this very well. Yesterday the annual conference of the British Chamber of […]
The British “nonsense”, the relaxed Commissioner and the TTIP “chiaroscuro” at this week’s Council
“The EU and the US should make all efforts to conclude negotiations on an ambitious, comprehensive and mutually beneficial TTIP by the end of 2015”, was the first conclusion of the first day of the 18-19 December EU Council. That our EU leaders are in an unprecedented rush to conclude the “notorious” trade deal with the […]
France pushes UK to stay and Germany to pay
Emmanuel Macron, France’s minister of Economy, visited London this week in an attempt to step up for his country’s future policy reforms. Among others, Macron announced that Britain must remain an EU member state and that Germany should invest in the EU. However, it was not mentioned anything about the fines that the European Commission […]
Cameron’s Conservatives and UKIP are exploiting and cultivating anti-EU immigration sentiment but Labour party isn’t?
Currently the significant success of the eurosceptic UKIP party in polarising the British voter in several social issues, like immigration, has set the agenda for other parties to follow. David Cameron and his conservative party has long seen that his electorate gets substantially motivated by anti-immigration campaigns. This is of course part of the general […]
UK’s Cameron takes the field to speed up TTIP talks. Will “rocket boosters” work?
In the last few months negotiations over the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) seemed to have slowed down significantly. TTIP talks have never been too lively but it looks like the growing critics and the loud protests of late summer and early autumn made the whole process reach a sort of deadlock. The huge interests, […]
Scotland in United Kingdom: It’s either the end or the beginning of the end
Whatever the outcome of this Thursday’s vote, Scotland is to leave the UK now or in the not so distant future. If it was not for the international intervention, including London’s financial and political sharks’ unprincipled meddling, the Scots would have voted for independence with overwhelming majority. During those last decisive days of the referendum […]
Look Mom, even the House of Lords says the #righttobeforgotten is not right
The relation between the UK and the EU is like that passionate thing usually developped between a cat and a dog. Historically since the very beginning of this love and hate affair in 1973, when London realized that the European project is a ‘good’ one, the UK always seeked to receive special attention, reminding to […]
Junker for Commission President: What were the stakes in this affair
Jean-Claude Juncker’s was confirmed last Tuesday as President of the European Commission for the next five years. In a secret ballot 422 MEPs who voted for him and 250 against. This goes beyond what David Cameron had imagined, when he decided to fervently oppose this appointment for the top EU job. To be reminded, that […]
How Cameron unwillingly helped Eurozone reunite; the long-term repercussions of two European Council decisions
Last week’s European Council, bringing together the 28 EU leaders, adopted two groundbreaking decisions. The first one, to propose Jean-Claude Juncker as next Commission President with a 26 to 2 vote was largely expected, and the European Parliament will predictably endorse him. The other Council verdict, to relax the strict application of the Stability and […]
This afternoon Britain will be once more isolated from mainland Europe
This morning the European Council will carry out an unprecedented procedure. The 28 EU leaders are supposed to nominate Jean-Claude Juncker as candidate for European Commission President by qualified majority, in a vote that has never taken place before. Then, Juncker, or an unlikely other candidate has to be also approved by the MEPs. Up to […]