Europe adrift
Brexit is a symptom of the European Union’s internal disarray. In quick succession, the debt crisis, the Ukraine crisis and the migration crisis all challenged centralist visions of ever-deeper integration and soft-power expansion. The political mainstream’s abandonment of traditional values spurred a voter revolt toward populist movements. This turn inward comes as the rules-based order the EU embodies is coming apart globally.
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Looking for the best tax code
Ballooning modern governments collect an increasing proportion of their countries’ output in taxes, which spreads inefficiency and economic stagnation. The drivers of this process can be neutralized, and the economy-distorting impact of taxation mitigated, with better tax-system design. Among OECD member states, there are examples of sound solutions to emulate.
The euro and the German constitution
Two legal challenges to the EU central bank’s most controversial policies have been working their way through Germany’s Federal Court of Justice, the country’s supreme court equivalent. In one of the cases, the justices in Karlsruhe already ruled that the authority of the EU Banking Union ought to be limited. ...
After the Great Fear: The EU’s Sibiu agenda
EU leaders heaved a sigh of relief after May’s European Parliament elections when the much-feared populist wave failed to rock the boat. Yet at most, they have gained a little time. Judging by the tone of the informal summit held in Sibiu, Romania, the EU’s new leadership will favor old ...
Do we need Boris Johnson?
British Conservatives must pick a new prime minister from two candidates: Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt. With the United Kingdom’s political leadership paralyzed and relations with the EU at an impasse, an enfant terrible might be the better choice.
The ever-ambiguous European Union project
The European Union’s ambiguity-ridden system is increasingly hard to sell to populations. Stranded in a no-man’s-land between a federal state and a confederation, today’s EU features neither sound democracy, nor prudent governance, nor a vibrant economy. A true federalist system could go a long way toward addressing these weaknesses, but it ...
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More Disruptions
Expanding state
A trend toward increased government influence in economies and personal life is curbing growth, and freedom, in many Western countries. The outsized role of government results in misplaced incentives, overregulation – which restrains markets and competition – and irresponsible budgetary ...
Middle East politics
The region, one of the cradles of civilization, is going through a turbulent period of historic realignment. Its powers are vying for political, military, economic and religious dominance with local players and outside actors. Armed conflicts, mainly civil wars, are ...
