Tel. +44 (0)20 7287 4414
Email. info@brugesgroup.com
Tel. +44 (0)20 7287 4414
Email. info@brugesgroup.com
The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
The Bruges Group spearheaded the intellectual battle to win a vote to leave the European Union and, above all, against the emergence of a centralised EU state.
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Bruges Group Blog

Spearheading the intellectual battle against the EU. And for new thinking in international affairs.
celebrating-1297377_1920 Thanks for the € Subsidy!

Danegeld and Cult Crash

The chief executive of Deutsche Bank Christian Sewing told a meeting in Frankfurt "We are not the sick man of Europe. But, it is also true that there are structural weaknesses that hold back our economy and prevent it from developing its great potential. And we will become the sick man of Europe if we do not address these structural issues now." Ac...

  775 Hits
world A World of Opportunity

Brexit is Working - Part TWO

We are pleased to publish this analysis by Sebastian James based on his blog at The Blue Anchor. PART TWO In part two we look at GDP growth. The dataset is here. Here is the graph:  Below is the section from 1956 when records began up to the 1975 referendum vote to remain:  I see a line going up from bottom left to top right. GDP grew fro...

  881 Hits
world A World of Opportunity

Brexit is Working

We are pleased to publish this analysis by Sebastian James based on his blog at The Blue Anchor.  PART ONE After the vote to leave The Guardian started a regular tracker to chart its impact on the economy. But as the Remainer predictions turned to dust and the good news kept piling up the Guardian quietly dropped this feature. So I'm reviving ...

  1160 Hits
success-3138743_192_20230415-100634_1 BREXIT Success

Remain Eat Your Words (yet again)

 Full yet? You wont see this on the BBC news but the last three quarters have seen the biggest improvement in the UK trade balance ever in history … EV-ER. This is precisely, exactly what the Remainiacs swore would NOT happen if we became an independent democracy again. The full dataset is here if you want to satisfy yourself I'm not maki...

  908 Hits
Dizzy_1 OBR the Doom Merchants

Politicking is Not the OBR’s Job

"Richard Hughes, the chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility, (OBR) claims Britain's departure from the European Union has reduced economic output by around 4 per cent compared to if the UK had remained in the bloc". "Speaking to the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Hughes was asked to quantify the 4 per cent drop in UK e...

  1031 Hits
rejected-5250678_1920__20230330-144103_1 The Blob Rejects Democracy

The EU Lobby’s Repudiation of UK Independence

The repudiation of the sovereignty of the UK's people by a pro EU elite has always been a puzzle. It is a puzzle because not one of them was able to explain their reason. In the absence of a cogent argument, independence opponents resorted to 'Project Fear' during the referendum campaign on leaving the EU. Blood curdling threats were rolled out exp...

  834 Hits
New-Horizon The World is more important than the end piece of Eurasia.

A True, Tried and Tested Horizon

Whatever the choreography we have a clog dance not a ballet. Sunak's 'deal' is yet another fudge. Involving the King in politics and the manipulation, copied from the EU, demonstrate a cynical disregard for probity. The Northern Ireland Protocol is a travesty. No Independent nation can agree to be ruled by a political court (The ECJ) whose sole rem...

  1065 Hits
europe-3256079_1920 EU Laws are Holding Back British Growth

Rishi Sunak Must Rip Up EU Laws Immediately to Deliver on Brexit’s Promise

The Bruges Group is pleased to republish this article by Barnabas Reynolds  Brussels' rules are prescriptive and controlling, and are holding back British growth The Prime Minister must restore Britain's sovereignty over our laws The Government is seeking the power to remove some of the vast swathes of EU-inherited law by the end of 2023 in it...

  1736 Hits
teacher-651318 Numeracy is the Key

What Needs to be Taught

The Prime Minister advocates that the teaching of Maths should be a priority, although one suspects that he really means numeracy, as the ability to add up a few figures is more useful for the average person that knowing all about the calculus of the hyperbola. However the level of debate concerning economic matters in this country makes clear that...

  1152 Hits
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Post-Brexit Online Trading for Better Opportunities: Study Promises Steady Economic Growth

Although Brexit and the free trade agreement initially disrupted and confused UK-based business operations due to the UK's dominant role in cross-border online distribution and sales with other European countries, things are finally looking up in the long run. A study published by the Board of Trade stresses the enormous prospects that digital trad...

  1329 Hits
death-5770668 The Grim Reaper

For Whom the Bell Tolls - Democracy, It Tolls for Thee

The short-lived Truss government came to power with a mandate to change Britain. She fought her campaign clearly stating her policy. She was lawfully elected according to the rules. Her policy was designed to produce growth. Cutting taxes was a part of the program. The respected US Tax Foundation in its 2020 report on UK tax wrote: "All things bein...

  1710 Hits
crisis-5238323_1920 Crisis. What Crisis?

Déjà Vu and a Confected Crisis

An energy crisis hit world economies and after almost three years the pain exploded in most countries. The exception was the USA. Acting pro-actively President Reagan slashed regulation to free the economy. He fired over 11,000 striking air traffic controllers. Breaking the strike. An action Paul Volcker saw as a 'watershed' moment in the battle ag...

  1444 Hits
Chris-Heaton-Harris

HeatON-Harris to Deliver on Protocol - The Union is Under Threat

The appointment of Chris-Heaton Harris as the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland was greeted warmly by unionists, ever hopeful that at long last we would have a Secretary of State who cared as much about protecting the rights of unionists as those of nationalists. Moreover, there was a great hope that this UK Government would break with the sy...

  2777 Hits
Union-Jack-bunting-on-Shankhill-Road

The Northern Irish Protocol Must Go Now

The Acts of Union is the present constitutional foundation of the United Kingdom. As the late Lord Trimble, the unionist architecture of the Belfast Agreement, said: The Acts of Union is the Union. The Northern Ireland Protocol "subjugates" (in the words of the Court of Appeal) Article VI of the Acts of Union, and therefore it follows that it subju...

  2694 Hits
Green Destruction Green Anarchy and the Illeberal Elite

Green Anarchy and the Illeberal Elite

Democracy, liberty and the continuation of western civilisation is under threat. It is threatened by those we have elected to protect and nurture our society. A small number of self entitled politicians and bureaucrats take decisions without reference to their electorate. Sunak's decision to raise Corporation tax to 25% next year has everything to ...

  2684 Hits
janus Duplicity

We are being hoodwinked (again) by the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill

 The following analysis by Ben Habib is reprinted from: https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/opinion/ben-habib-we-are-being-hoodwinked-again-by-the-northern-ireland-protocol-bill-3750685 Ben Habib is a Newspaper Columnist and former Brexit Party MEP I am having a profound sense of déjà vu. In 2019 I said the Prime Minister's oven ready deal was a...

  7224 Hits
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door-1587863_1920 Bolted Door

KNOCKING AT THE EU’s DOOR

 Nicola Sturgeon, Scotlands first Minister, has been banging on, yet again, about holding another referendum on Scottish independence and is proposing to hold a plebiscite during October 2023. This is despite the fact she lost the so-called 'once in a lifetime' independence referendum in 2014. If the people of Scotland go mad and vote to break...

  1476 Hits
london-453099 Northern Ireland Protocol Bill

REPORT BY LEGAL STAR CHAMBER ON NORTHERN IRELAND PROTOCOL BILL

Sir William Cash MPRt Hon David Jones MPMartin Howe QCBarnabas Reynolds The constitutional and legal position of the United Kingdom in relation to the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland (the "Protocol") is founded on Section 38 of the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 ("EUWAA 2020"). There are also pertinent issues relating to international ...

  1536 Hits
oil-industry-4663283_1920 Oli Rigs

Net Zero Fantasy

British politicians and mainstream media have claimed that Russia is responsible for "turning off" our gas supplies, amid hysteria over Ukraine. That's not the case, the culprit is closer to home. In late 2021, the British government paused the development of the Jackdaw and Cambo oil and gas fields off Scotland as a result of its commitment to the...

  1901 Hits
New-Workng-class The new working class: how to win hearts, minds and votes

The new working class: how to win hearts, minds and votes, by Claire Ainsley, paperback, 200 pages, ISBN 978-1-4473-4418-6, Policy Press, 2018, £12.99

 Claire Ainsley is Executive Director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. In this useful book she shows that voters generally have very sensible views about what Britain needs to flourish. She points out that "by Labour's third successive victory in 2005, working-class support for Labour had waned, and non-voting rates of working-class voters i...

  24940 Hits
career-g2fc5edaac_1920

Moving on From EU Law – Good for the Economy, Good for Business!

By Barnabas Reynolds. The Brexit Freedoms Bill aims to end the special legal status of EU law. It will also simplify the removal of retained EU law. Here Barnabas Reynolds explains the advantages for the City – and the economy. The UK has recently been confronted with a series of adverse economic shocks – from Covid and the war in Ukraine, to the c...

  1749 Hits
family-1 Family Business

How to Build a Legacy Within Your Family Business

Some people who start a business dream of it becoming an enterprise that is passed down through generations. While this is true for some companies and families, it can also be a fraught ambition. Families can be dysfunctional, and when that dysfunction is transferred to the workplace, it can be catastrophic for the business. Furthermore, there is n...

  1980 Hits
hands-g2d9db562f_1920

Is globalisation defunct?

Is there a need for a rethink of the 21st century direction of travel of globalisation, the concept of a global village, 4IR, communitarianism and supranationalism, as conceived at the end of the previous century? Vulnerabilities of scale The devastating impact of the pandemic on economics, trade, logistics and the global supply chain, plus the imp...

  1858 Hits
Anglo-American280

The United States and Europe Redefined

It is past time to re-evaluate key U.S. assumptions about Europe and the European Union.  For far too long, America and Europe have had a very one-sided relationship. It is like a codependent marriage, in which one partner sacrifices his or her own needs for those of the spouse. That person's actions will completely revolve around the other pe...

  2066 Hits
handshake-g188ee8f11_1920

“Despite Brexit” becomes “Despite Biden” with US mini-trade deals

US states courted for deals on financial services after US tariffs on steel and aluminium lifted.  A look at the improving UK trade with US and Canada While all eyes have been on the possibility of a large bilateral deal with the US, the two governments have been reaching across the pond to strike small deals that amount to great improvements ...

  1561 Hits
big-ben-g64f0f7aa3_1920

British consistency makes it No.1 for Global Soft Power since 2010

Facts4EU.Org presents their review of the major Global Soft Power rankings in the world. Their analysis of these rankings covers every year from the first in 2010 until the latest for 2022. We reviewed the three emerging ranking systems that have over time become more and more detailed and analytical. We started with the Institute of Governmen...

  2603 Hits
cruise-g8c59950c0_1920

P&O in employment race to the bottom where no one wins

BackgroundIn one of the most egregious examples of the nefarious practice of fire and rehire, P&O Ferries sacked 800 workers via Zoom this week, without notice, attempting to replace them with agency workers on much lower pay and worse terms and conditions. By using security guards to escort hardworking employees forcibly and inhumanely off the...

  1612 Hits

Where the UK Education Technology Industry is Headed Post-Brexit

It's clear that UK industry is in a period of adjustment post-Brexit. Despite the drop in FDI and disruptions like the global pandemic, there are nonetheless emerging industries where the UK has the potential for global leadership. The education technology (edtech) industry is undoubtedly one of them. 1. UK education pre-Brexit Prior to the Brexit ...

  2275 Hits
Mark-Francois-Bruges-Group

'Spartan Victory' - Interview with Mark Francois MP

"We were the 28 MPs who saved Britain, we saved our nation and this is the inside story of how we did it." The Rt. Hon. Mark Francois MP The Bruges Group led the intellectual debate for Britain to leave the European Union and now we have the story from within, the story of the ERG from an MP who was at the heart of Brexit. 28 Members of Parliament ...

  4201 Hits
binding-contract-g46fddd0b2_1920

Forget the sermons - first read the small print

Since before the 2016 referendum and continuing non-stop, those against GB leaving the EU including - Joe Biden and other US Democrats , most EU bureaucrats, several European politicians (particularly the French) and of course our own Re-joiners - have been pursuing the following rhetoric: "You must not go against or interfere with the 19...

  1715 Hits
extinction-rebellion-gb352c73aa_1920

Hot Air - Carbon Dioxide and Global Warming: A Review and a Few Facts

Introduction The purpose of these notes is to present some facts about the campaign to stop global warming and climate change. The climate has changed in the past, is probably changing now, and will change in the future. The campaign is trying to stop the unstoppable. The natural factors affecting global temperature are very powerful: terrestrial, ...

  8478 Hits
WTO-HQ

Does the WTO Promote Trade?

"Does the WTO promote trade?" is the research question that this literature review attempts to answer. The key word "promote" is taken to mean increase. The WTO is an abbreviation of the World Trade Organisation and has '164 members since 29 July 2016'[](WTO Members and Observers, no date) and was established in 1995 after the conclusion of many ba...

  2135 Hits
WhatsApp-Image-2021-10-21-at-22.18.18

The Northern Ireland Protocol: Trigger Article 16!

Where is the evidence that this ruling has saved anyone from being exposed to sub standard or dangerous products? We have heard so much from the EU Big Wigs and European politicians about how important it is to have checks on goods going from one part of the United Kingdom to another – mainland UK to Northern Ireland - it is therefore vital to...

  1766 Hits
Peter-Lilley

In Conversation with Lord Lilley

I had the opportunity to speak to Lord (Peter) Lilley, a former speaker at a Bruges Group conference who served in Cabinet in the Thatcher and Major Governments as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and Secretary of State for Social Security – and later in William (now Lord) Hague's Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer and De...

  2331 Hits
Conference-Banner

Liberty Zone at Party Conference

At Conservative Party Conference this year, we are delighted to be hosting the 'Liberty Zone' on Monday 4th October 2021 at the Science and Industry Museum, Liverpool Road, Manchester, M3 4PF.  We are holding our annual Party Conference event this year alongside Time 4 Recovery, a group set up to pressure the government with oppositi...

  3785 Hits
Manley

In Conversation with John Manley OC PC - Former Deputy PM of Canada

I had the opportunity to speak to the Honorable John Manley, a long serving Cabinet Minister in the Canadian Government, having served in key posts such as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Foreign Affairs – among others. John Manley is also known for having authored the Manley Report on Afghanistan in 2007 and having been...

  2723 Hits
Coalition-of-chaos

A Coalition of Chaos

The failure of the SNP to gain a majority in the elections to the Scottish parliament has forced them into a huddle with the equally separatist Greens – and into a series of increasingly unpopular policies. Dubbed a 'coalition of chaos', the new alliance in August between the Scottish National Party and the Scottish Green Party has been born out of...

  2459 Hits
CP

In Conversation with the Hon. Christopher Pyne

Kendall O'Donnell and I, as contributors representing The Bruges Group, had the opportunity to speak to the Honorable Christopher Pyne, a long-serving former Cabinet Minister in the Australian Government, holding portfolios ranging from Education to Defence. We spoke on matters ranging from the domestic, such as Australia's Covid policy and the nat...

  2453 Hits
Jim-Gilmore

Interview with Ambassador Jim Gilmore

Kendall O'Donnell and I had the opportunity to speak to Jim Gilmore, former US Ambassador to the OSCE, Governor of Virginia, and Chairman of the Republican National Committee, among other roles. We spoke on matters international, regional, and domestic, on topics stretching from President Biden's foreign policy, European security and the EU's role ...

  4058 Hits
US Skyline

Why the United States Needs to Re-think Ideas Such as the Wolfowitz Doctrine When Thinking About Dealing with China

A new consensus: Why the United States needs to re-think ideas such as the Wolfowitz Doctrine when thinking about dealing with China  The U.S.A. is no longer in a position of primacy in the Indo-Pacific; to regain hegemony, it must alter its policies. U.S foreign policy, ever since the tenure of President Woodrow Wilson and his famous 14 point...

  3639 Hits
Land-of-Hope-and-Glory

Land of Hope and Glory

How the Commonwealth of Nations Can Become the Most Innovative Bloc in the World  By Alexander Flint Mitchell MSc Dissertation for Business Innovation with EntrepreneurshipBirkbeck, University of London2020 ABSTRACT Much has been written on the three topics of the literature review of this thesis: innovation, the Commonwealth of Nations' ...

  2542 Hits
Nigel-Dodds

Waterloo Day Lecture - ‘The Future of the Union’

 Panelists: Barry Legg (Chair), Lord Dodds of Duncairn, Sir Bernard Jenkin MP, James Webber Lord Dodds, former Westminster Leader of the DUP: On the recent resignation of Edwin Poots: resignation provides the opportunity to "move forward…in a more constructive way"The imposition of the NI protocol has been the main contributory factor to ...

  2586 Hits
Sir-Bernard-Jenkin

‘The Future of the Union’, Sir Bernard Jenkin MP

Panelists: Barry Legg (Chair), Lord Dodds of Duncairn, Sir Bernard Jenkin MP, James Webber Barry Legg, Chairman of the Bruges Group: Our next speaker is Bernard Jenkin. Bernard is Chairman of the House of Commons Liaison Committee, on which all select committee chairmen sit. Previously, he was Chairman of the Public Administration Select Committee,...

  2694 Hits
RC

The 'Build Back Better' Charter

The new Atlantic Charter, signed by the Prime Minister and President Biden as a 'reaffirmation' of the Special Relationship, is a somewhat mixed bag. The Atlantic Charter of 1941 envisioned a postwar world order we're all too familiar with, from respecting national sovereignty and democracy overseas to the aim of lowering tariffs. This 'New' Atlant...

  2689 Hits
Reagan-Berlin

"Tear Down This Wall": How Reagan Changed the World

Today marks 34 years since one of the most memorable and historic speeches ever made by a US President, and one that changed the course of history, it is of course when President Reagan stood in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and told General Secretary Gorbachev to "tear down this wall". Now as we face today's challenges, our leaders shoul...

  4723 Hits
20

Aurora - A New Dawn for Sterling with Benefits for All

A major City group has just published a report calling for an immediate development of an e-pound Britain could create a Western alternative to a Chinese digital/e-currency It is not generally appreciated that over 98% of UK transactional banking (by value) takes place in what is known as 'the wholesale market'. Less than 2% takes place in the reta...

  2649 Hits
Wind

Fish, Vaccines and Wind

By Professor James Blyth The Fishing Saga The story of the UK's fishing rights scarcely needs re-telling, but it is well worth remembering. They are part of the internationally agreed economic resources of the UK, and are located primarily within the North Sea and parts of the Atlantic Ocean. They fall within the UK's exclusive economic zone (EEZ),...

  2297 Hits
Bitcoin

Biden, Cryptocurrencies, and the American State

 In recent days, the internet has been abuzz with the news of Joe Biden's proposed hike of federal capital gains tax to 43.4% for the highest earners. However, unsubstantiated rumours swirl of another, far more significant reform to American taxation: an 80% tax on cryptocurrency transactions. If true, it must be conceded that such a reform ha...

  2347 Hits
Todd-Muller

Interview with New Zealand MP, Todd Muller: CANZUK and More

I had the opportunity to speak to Todd Muller, MP for the Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand, the Opposition National Party's Spokesperson (Shadow Minister) for Trade, Export Growth, and Internal Affairs, and the Former Leader of the Opposition. We spoke on matters international and domestic, concerning Britons, New Zealanders, and hi...

  2476 Hits
John-Longworth-LML

'We Need Courage, Not Lockdown!' John Longworth

John Longworth was the Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce; he was also an MEP and co-Chairman of Leave Means Leave. A great problem with many politicians and most civil servants is that they don't understand business. The reverse is probably also true. The enterprise economy is alien to the political class and they tend ...

  2868 Hits
hands-1063442_1920

Will The EU Restrict UK Markets?

 In May 2015 the announcement of the European Union Referendum Bill in the Queen's Speech was not the major news story it perhaps should have been. At the time, it was viewed as an effort by then Prime Minister David Cameron to quell the dissenting Euro-sceptic voices amongst his backbenches. As the following 5 years of action, in-fighting and...

  2898 Hits
Rishi-Sunak

Pre-Budget Suggestions - No Tax Rises!

As the Chancellor prepares to deliver his Budget, we want to make clear a few brief advisories to Mr Sunak on what this historical Budget should contain. First of all, there has been plenty of speculation from countless newspapers and TV reports that the Chancellor is plotting tax increases, namely corporation tax and potentially freezing tax bands...

  3513 Hits
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Good News. The EU is Spiteful!

All except its acolytes knew (and accepted) that, but how spectacularly have the EU Imperialists lived up to expectations. In a recent article (Liberal Fascism's Last Hurrah?) I wrote: "The EU has never been interested in a mutually beneficial deal. To deal with that I offer something I learned in negotiating with a variety of corrupt countries' re...

  2886 Hits
Kate-Hoey

Kate Hoey: "Scrap the Northern Irish Protocol!" 'In conversation with Baroness Hoey'

I spoke to former Labour MP for Vauxhall, Kate Hoey, now Baroness Hoey of Lylehill and Rathlin (County Antrim, Northern Ireland), after sitting for 30 years as a Labour MP and spearheading Labour Leave during the referendum and the subsequent years until her retirement from the House of Commons in December 2019, she was made a life peer i...

  7023 Hits
trade

The UK’s post-Brexit Role within the Indo-Pacific Strategy Debate

The term 'Indo-Pacific' first came into practical use by the British Government in the 1960s during the height of the empire's process of decolonisation. As a strategy, it sought to conceive what the UK's position within the region would be as the country gradually withdrew its influence there. The structural constraints of the Cold War—which had m...

  2768 Hits
Canary-Wharf

Free of the EU’s Stifling Legal System, British Financial Services will go from Strength to Strength

By Barney Reynolds  Like it, or loathe it, Brexit is an opportunity for Britain to reassert herself as a sovereign nation. For those of us who are optimistic about our post-EU future, we have only to point to the recent fiasco around the EU vaccination roll out as one example of how "taking back control" has already been beneficial. But t...

  3184 Hits
Uyghur

Our Product Consumption Should Not Come at the Expense of Uyghurs' Freedom

Many of us have been saddened to learn of the atrocious inhumane treatment by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang over recent months. Although constantly denied by the CCP, evidence of genocide is undeniable. The CCP claim they are offering 're-education camps' to Uyghurs, said to offer family planning programmes and...

  3708 Hits
Ben-Habi_20210211-002626_1

In Conversation with Ben Habib: Brexit, Lockdown and China

I caught up with former Brexit Party MEP, Ben Habib who now runs the pressure group 'Unlocked', campaigning for an end to lockdown and highlighting the economic and social damage of remaining in lockdown. You can watch the full conversation on YouTube, with links to the videos throughout or digest a condensed summary on each question and debate poi...

  5521 Hits
President-Trump

With the Anglosphere Champion Gone from the Oval Office, We Shall Have to Lump it for Four Long Years

In November, Nigel Farage tweeted, "Biden hates the UK," https://twitter.com/nigel_farage/status/1325166010106851328?lang=en. That statement may have been deliberately unnuanced for effect, but it contains more than an element of truth. So too, many on this side of the Atlantic wonder if Biden, hell bent to roll back the policies of his predecessor...

  4762 Hits
Shipbuilding

How a Legal Mystery Reveals the Continuing EU Threat to UK Shipbuilding

For years, politicians and industry associations have claimed that the UK can simply ignoring EU defence contract rules which require an international competition where the cheapest bid wins. If the rules were rigid, UK defence and shipbuilding industry would lose many UK Government contract overseas. But the rules are not rigid, they have always c...

  3751 Hits
Barney-Reynolds

Barney Reynolds: Treasury Select Committee on the UK's Economic and Trading Relationship with the EU

On Monday 11th January The Treasury Select Committee discussed the UK's future economic and trading relationship with the European Union; Bruges Group speaker and friend, Barney Reynolds was invited to give evidence as a witness. Present at the meeting were Select Committee Chairman, Mel Stride MP (Conservative), Rushanara Ali MP (Labour), Steve Ba...

  3249 Hits
lorries-at-Belfast-port

All at Sea

By David Scullion It's been a fortnight since the Northern Ireland Protocol was introduced and yesterday in parliament the DUP MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson secured an Urgent Question on the problems it has caused in that short time. Responding, Michael Gove (who privately hinted to Brexiteer MPs it would never be introduced) said that there had been "c...

  2965 Hits
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Boris-Johnson

We Got Brexit Done!

The Bruges Group Statement on Britain's EU Exit  https://www.brugesgroup.com/blog/statement-on-britain-s-eu-exit ERG Star Chamber Legal Analysis The full text of the Star Chamber's analysis of the trade deal https://lawyersforbritain.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/ERG-Legal-Advisory-Committee-Opinion-on-EU-UK-Trade-and-Cooperation-Agreeme...

  4664 Hits
Michel-Barnier

The EU Has Outsmarted The UK At Every Turn

The standard mantra in EU trade negotiations is that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. Everyone knows this, except apparently British trade negotiators who have accepted the very opposite by acceding to the EU's sequencing of negotiations. First was the divorce bill. The UK agreed to pay a £40bn settlement when under international law t...

  2576 Hits
Boris-and-UVDL

Boris Must Keep The EU At Arm’s Length – Or He’ll Regret It

By Dr Lee Rotherham  Epicharmus, a Greek comic writer of the fifth century BC, had this maxim: "Stay sober and remember to be sceptical." It is as good a piece of advice as we are likely to deploy at present. We are at a time of flux and flex in the Brexit talks. Helpfully, Michel Barnier has reportedly now figured out how to get his Zoom work...

  2753 Hits
Sir-John-Redwood

Sir John Redwood: Biden, Brexit and Lockdown 2.0

Starting with the implications of the second lockdown, the former Cabinet Minister said it will be damaging for the economy though not as damaging as last time. The virus should be taken seriously – and treatments should be sought etc. – but let's get life back to normal for those free from the disease or not at much risk, he said. Sir John hopes t...

  2924 Hits
Great-Reset

The Great Reset: The Virus That's Transforming Government and Society for the Worse

Initial article on The Bow Group By Robert Oulds and Dr Niall McCrae  "You'll own nothing, and you'll be happy" (World Economic Forum, 18 November 2016). Covid-19 is a crisis too good to waste for UN agencies and other transnational bodies. The coronavirus pandemic has led to governments around the world signing up to the 'Great Reset' designe...

  5312 Hits
MAGA

Why Donald Trump is on the Way to Another Victory

President Trump will win big since Republican voters are super energised and are turning out in massive numbers to vote for him, on the other hand Democrat voters are not enthused by the incompetent and senile 'Sleepy' Joe Biden. The polls that predict Biden is winning the US election so far, which is already underway, assume that there's...

  4047 Hits
Boris-signing

The EU Deal Unmasked

Link to the full paper by the Centre for Brexit Studies By The Rt. Hon. Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP (Conservative Party MP), Martin Howe QC (Intellectual Property and EU Law; Chairman of Lawyers for Britain), Professor David Collins (International Economic Law, University of London), Edgar Miller (Managing Director of Palladian Limited;...

  5433 Hits
President-Trump-Union-Jack

Why the UK Needs a Trump Victory

As the US general election approaches, it is very much in our interests on who wins, there are some people in the Conservative Party suggesting it would be beneficial for Joe Biden to be inaugurated and to walk into the White House on 20th January, following the US general election next week. However, I think there'd be nothing worse than Mr B...

  5462 Hits
Britain outside Europe; The need for a fundamental, multilateral based UK Indo-Pacific Policy

Britain outside Europe; The need for a fundamental, multilateral based UK Indo-Pacific Policy

By stating that the UK should prepare for a no-deal Brexit as both sides refused to compromise, the Rt Hon Michael Gove produced a shattering rebuke to Macron's hardliner posture over the negotiations. This change of tone from the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster exhibits an overdue realisation that Britain must have a plan for all eventualitie...

  3571 Hits
Boris-Whitty-and-Valance

The Cost of Lockdown and Then What We Do Next

Lockdown has absolutely crippled the economy and what for? We have a similar death rate to Sweden which never locked down, the average age of death from COVID in the UK is 82.4 when the average age of death for the UK as a whole is only 81.2. Not only that, what I would like to see published is the death rates from other illnesses such as cancer, h...

  4888 Hits
Best-of-British

We Face a Critical Choice: Global Britain, or the Mire of Protectionism

By Shanker Singham  As the Agriculture Bill makes its way through Parliament, the UK faces a critical choice in its international trade policy. It is widely understood in trade circles that agriculture is the gate through which all trade policy flows. Long the bugbear of world trade, agricultural sectors all over the world have rigidly op...

  2682 Hits
David-Frost-and-Michel-Barnier

The Solution to the Backstop: Article 349

By Jonathan Stanley  Downing Street would have us believe we are making progress on a free trade deal with the EU. Beyond trying to give away as much of our fish as possible for as long as possible I'm not so sure. Ultimately the Irish border remains a big issue and the recent Internal Market Bill, badly marketed by No.10, only confirms this. ...

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Felixstowe Felixstowe

Independent Trade arbitration is a right, so why is the EU flouting it?

As negotiations began the week of an EU summit on the 15th October, there was talk of the EU pressing their chief negotiator Michel Barnier to insist on tough enforcement rules for any UK trade deal. This came as a result of their shock to the Internal Market Bill, yet while any dispute resolution mechanism is normal for any trade deal, the words '...

  2563 Hits
UkK R&D UK R&D

The UK desperately needs a breakthrough in R&D, but Europe isn’t the catalyst for change

Perpetual doom and gloom for British science as a result of uncertainty with our relationship with Europe is the mood in the FT this week. The paper recently reported that research and development (R&D) collaboration by British businesses under the EU's research grant scheme has halved since 2016. But contrary to the FT's personal Project Fear ...

  3244 Hits
The EU’s unlevel playing field; why Britain must re-secure the right to support it’s industries David Frost and Michel Barnier

The EU’s unlevel playing field; why Britain must re-secure the right to support it’s industries

The Covid-19 crisis has brought to light a fundamental flaw within the European Union – there is one rule for Germany's state aid regime and another for the UK's. As such there is a fundamental need in negotiations this week to redress this flaw. Data shows that Germany made up for nearly 10% of all EU-authorised State Aid requests from April ...

  2875 Hits
20200920_113535

The power of the City is a double-edged sword, but it is yet to be respected

Samuel Johnson famously said, 'when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life'. However, unlike S.Johnson, it seems that B.Johnson has succumbed to this, in light of the lack of news surrounding the future of our greatest financial asset, the City of London. Whilst the recent focus has been perpetually on State Aid and fishing rights, the City ...

  2827 Hits
img-2

Busting the Food Price Myth in a No Deal Brexit

By Catherine McBride  On Friday the BBC headline news included an item entitled: Shoppers could pay more after no-deal Brexit. The story was planted by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) who said that tariffs would add £3.1bn a year to the cost of importing food and drink unless the UK and the EU can strike a free trade agreement. This was a ...

  3277 Hits
IMG-123

Would a ‘No Deal’ Brexit Really Cost Three Times More Than COVID?

Link to initial article By Julian Jessop Brexit talks resumed this week with growing hopes that a trade deal can be done in time for the October EU summit. This follows speculation that the UK has softened its position after Boris Johnson was 'shocked by a London School of Economics report suggesting that no deal would cost Britain up to three time...

  2823 Hits
Lorries in Dover

A taste of the real world; Macron has confused intimidation with the reality of no deal

Over the past week there have been announcements from Michael Gove regarding the provisions for international lorries leaving the UK after December 31st, something which apparently Macron's government sees as abhorrent. The labelling of these announcements as 'intimidation' by Clément Beaune, Macron's Europe Minister, further shows the EU's hypocri...

  2863 Hits
Boris-Johnson-Internal-Markets

An Unavoidable Exit

European technocrats and their British supporters have been left aghast by the government decision to present the Internal Market Bill, designed to protect the integrity of the United Kingdom. The remainer machinery, which has remained largely dormant over the past few months, has awaken in defence of international law and the United Kingdom's stan...

  3816 Hits
Boris-and-Rishi

The Alternative to Tax Rises - A Recovery Plan for Britain

As reported in The Sunday Telegraph last week, and again today, some Treasury officials have been flirting with the idea of tax increases to foot the bill for the COVID measures put in place and for the lockdown that the left and media were so desperately pressuring for. However, according to several media sources, Number 10, Boris Johnson and Domi...

  4848 Hits
Erin-OToole

Canada’s New Tory Leader Spells Good Things For CANZUK

The election of Erin O'Toole as the Canadian Tories' new leader demonstrates that value-based politics and value-based trading partnerships are truly possible. Erin O'Toole, previously his party's Shadow Foreign Minister, was one of the most vocal advocates in favour of a CANZUK (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom) alliance and ...

  6429 Hits
Adern-and-Collins-NZ

Kiwis and CANZUK: A Bridge Too Far No More?

For over 40 years, New Zealand has been keen to engage, but Britain ignored their pleas. Finally, New Zealand can not only engage, but also be part of a bigger alliance – the CANZUK alliance. CANZUK is a largely economic alliance between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK based on the principles of free trade and possibly free-er movement. ...

  6024 Hits
Von-der-Leyen-elbow-pump

The EU’s Pandemic Recovery Fund is a Leap Towards Ever Closer Union

Marathon talks have concluded between EU leaders as they battled over the details of its multibillion-euro pandemic recovery fund. With France and Germany head-to-head against the frugal four of Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden over grants, veto rights and funding criteria, you could be mistaken for seeing the talks as the break-up of t...

  2990 Hits
CANZUK

The Complicated Politics of CANZUK in Canada

In the aftermath of the British exit from the EU, the concept of CANZUK, a largely economic alliance between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, all of which have the monarchy, the same common law systems, and parliamentary democracy, among others. However, the question remains, what has stopped these four countries, throughout ...

  8896 Hits
Noel-Edmunds

Deal or No Deal

Brexit may have gone quiet lately in the mainstream media, but between now and the end of October will be critical. Remain have been defeated in trying to keep us in the EU, their plans for a 'People's Vote' have been defeated, and their attempts to extend the transition period have been defeated. Their last hope is that between now and October our...

  4467 Hits
website

How to Start a Kratom Website

There's no denying the fact, kratom is having a major moment right now. From being labeled as the most toxic plant in the world to being used as a weight-loss medicine, kratom has had its journey. Its global popularity has encouraged many young entrepreneurs to cultivate this plant and start their kratom business. If you sift through the internet, ...

  2893 Hits
Sir-Bill-Cash

Sir Bill Cash: Where We're at With Brexit

Having experienced the entire process of leaving the EU since the Maastricht rebellion, through to the passing of the sovereignty clause, Section 38 of the Withdrawal Agreement Act 2020, including the result of the referendum itself, I am thoroughly aware that there must be no ECJ jurisdiction after 31 December 2020. The Governm...

  6241 Hits
brexitinapostcoronavirusworldbanner

Brexit in a post-Coronavirus World

The challenges and the opportunities  With the speakers; - Rt. Hon. Sir John Redwood MP- Tim Congdon CBE- Professor Patrick Minford CBE- Dr. Gerard Lyons Professor Tim Congdon CBE:Are Eurozone Trends in Public Debt and Financial Imbalance Unsustainable?  Quotations from the April 2020 ECB Economic Bulletin 1. "…th...

  3655 Hits
Viktor-Orban

The Interesting Finances of the European Union

There's nothing very surprising when the EU spends money in individual member States to enhance its standing, and to influence people in those States to work in what the EU sees as its interests. That's known as old-fashioned pork-barrelling. But when the EU argues that the bankrolling of political organisations within a State by those outside it i...

  3150 Hits
Unlevel-Playing-field

On the Level Playing Field

Roland Vaubel Professor emeritus of Economics Universitaet Mannheim Germany Mr. Barnier seems to misunderstand the argument for maintaining a level playing field. The laws of a country, above all, ought to reflect the preferences of its people. It follows that the laws ought to differ between countries if, and to the extent that, the preferences of...

  3314 Hits
Fishing-boat

Fisheries and the Brexit Negotiations

Every year the International Council for the for the Exploration of the Sea and the European Union's Scientific, Technical and Economic Council for Fisheries make a suggestion of what the TAC should be for each stock. A stock of fish refers to a "particular species of fish caught in a particular geographic area". The European Commission drafts a pr...

  3699 Hits
Boris-signing

The Brexit Transition Period Won't be Extended and Rightly So

On Friday the European Commission admitted that the Brexit transition period will not be extended, and that Britain must now prepare to police the border in the Irish Sea. In a meeting of the joint committee on the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement, Michael Gove told Maros Sefcovic, a vice-president for the commission, that the UK wou...

  3761 Hits
Barnier-and-Fros_20200609-113114_1

The UK-EU Trade Talks – Why The Pandemic Has Changed Everything

By Victor Hill, first published on Master Investor   The UK-EU Trade Talks – Why the pandemic has changed everything - Master Investor By Victor Hill https://masterinvestor.co.uk/economics/the-uk-eu-trade-talks-why-the-pandemic-has-changed-everything/ The Road to No Deal  While Europe and the world have been monopolised by the Covid-19 pa...

  3315 Hits
Thatcher-and-the-EU

Margaret Thatcher - The Heroine of Brexit

Margaret Thatcher's Bruges Speech to the College of Europe in September 1988 - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqv8HF84EOs&t=1s The Bruges Group was set up in 1989 in honour of one speech, a now landmark address made by our then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to the College of Europe on 20th September 1988 on the 'Future of Europe'. L...

  10022 Hits
Sir-Geoffrey-Howe

Sir Geoffrey Howe: A Revolutionary Thatcherite Chancellor

During this pandemic, I felt it would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look to the careers of some political giants who don't always get the recognition or remembrance they deserve. One of my greatest interests is political history and every Friday I will publish an article outlining the career and some interesting facts about some polit...

  7846 Hits
Euro-collapse

Das Ende?

Almost four years after we voted to leave the European Union (EU), Boris Johnson delivered on his promise to 'GET BREXIT DONE'. Little did we know at the time (on 31st January 2020) that the year was going to bring its own woes, which are now threatening to bring down the European dream of unity, solidarity, and borderless territory. In addition to...

  4047 Hits
The-Critic

The Government Split Over Free Trade Deals - Cabinet Fear of a BRINO Coup

Originally published in The Critic by David Scullion https://thecritic.co.uk/the-government-split-over-free-trade/  The Government is committed to signing Free Trade deals. The Conservative Party's 2019 manifesto said as much, and added: "Our trade deals will not only be free but fair". The UK has just started trade talks with the United ...

  3871 Hits

Contact us

Director : Robert Oulds
Tel: 020 7287 4414
Chairman: Barry Legg
 
The Bruges Group
246 Linen Hall, 162-168 Regent Street
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KEY PERSONNEL
 
Founder President :
The Rt Hon. the Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven LG, OM, FRS 
Vice-President : The Rt Hon. the Lord Lamont of Lerwick,
Chairman: Barry Legg
Director : Robert Oulds MA, FRSA
Washington D.C. Representative : John O'Sullivan CBE
Founder Chairman : Lord Harris of High Cross
Head of Media: Jack Soames