Brexit – Since the Brexit

European Commission International Politics

Commission appoints Barnier as Chief Brexit Negotiator

July 29, 2016 adminBrexit, didier seeuws, michel barnier0 comment

The European Commission has appointed French career politician Michel Barnier, a former Minister of France and two times European Commissioner, as the Commission’s chief negotiator with the UK over the Brexit. Barnier’s appointment has drawn criticism from several quarters, with one analyst noting, that this is the Commission’s first decision since the Brexit vote, and it is a bad one. Although an experienced politician, who was first elected Member of the French parliament aged 27 in 1978, Barnier is also known as mono-linguist with a limited working knowledge of English. From…

UK Politics

Leadsom retires from Tory Leadership Race – May Poised to become PM

July 11, 2016 adminandrea leadsom, Brexit, theresa may, tory leadership election 20160 comment

Tory Brexitter and leadership contender Andrea Leadsom has withdrawn from the Conservative Party leadership race, leaving Theresa May as the only candidate and probable next PM of the United Kingdom. Leadsom was seen as a new bright star of the Conservative party following her contribution to the Leave campaign, and she was not tainted by the post-referendum in-fight between former allies Michael Gove and Boris Johnson. Although Theresa May had the support of the majority of the Conservative parliamentary party, Leadsom was considered to have a good chance of securing a majority…

International Politics UK Politics

Cameron rejects New Brexit Referendum

July 9, 2016July 9, 2016 adminandrea leadsom, Brexit, theresa may0 comment

In a ironic twist of circumstances, David Cameron today rejected calls for a new Brexit referendum. Cameron’s rejection comes despite 4 mio. signatures calling for a new referendum to take place, and without the matter having been formally discussed in cabinet or in the House of Commons. Ironically, while many UK politicians have critized the EU for being un-democratic, it only takes 1 mio signatures for a citizens’ initiative to be taken up for discussion in the European Commission, while apparently 4 mio signatures is not enough to take something…

Financial Markets UK Politics

Waters have Settled amid Huge Doubts about Brexit

July 6, 2016July 6, 2016 adminBrexit, corbyn, farage, gove, leadership, leadsom, may0 comment

Almost two weeks after the crucial Brexit vote, the waters seems to have settled down a bit both in the UK and in the rest of the European Union. Paradoxically, however, the number of unknown factors have increased significantly since the vote, and how it will all turn out in the end is anybody’s guess. The major UK parties are all but leaderless, as David Cameron has announced his intention to resign, and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is basically without support among his own MPs, making any opinion he may…

European Commission International Politics

Brexit Discussions in Bruxelles

June 29, 2016June 29, 2016 adminBrexit, Cameron, European Parliament, farage, Guy Verhofstadt, Juncker0 comment

The discussions about what to do after the Brexit referendum has moved to Bruxelles, where there has been a number of meetings in the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and the European Commission in recent days. At a meeting in the European Parliament, a smug and bellicose Nigel Farage told his fellow parliamentarians that Isn’t it funny? When I came here 17 years ago and I said that I wanted to lead a campaign go get Britain out of the European Union, you all laughed at me. Well, I…

Financial Markets

UK stripped of AAA rating by Big Two Credit Rating Agencies

June 27, 2016 adminBrexit, EURO2016, ratings0 comment

On a day which has seen UK party politics in turmoil and the England national team crashing out of the EURO 2016 being defeated by microscopic Iceland, two of the three major international credit rating agencies have stripped the UK of its top credit rating, making it more expensive for households, companies and UK government alike to borrow money. The rating was downgraded by two notches, from AAA to AA, by Standard & Poors and by one notch from AA+ to AA by Fitch. UK Growth forecasts were downgraded as well,…

Financial Markets UK Politics

Markets Continue to Drop in Wake of Brexit – But Not as much as Expected

June 27, 2016June 27, 2016 admin£350 million, bregret, Brexit, farage, IDS, sturgeon0 comment

The markets continued to drop in early trading on June 27 following the Brexit referendum. Although the massive drops predicted in the early hours after the vote has yet to materialize, the Pound is trading at its lowest level against the US dollar for about 30 years, and the FTSE is a further 2% down compared to the Friday closing level, and is now trading dangerously close to the 6,000 points mark. It is being speculated that the – after all – less-than-expected fall is in part due to increasing doubts over whether the UK will actually…

UK Politics

Labour Meltdown as Benn Sacking Triggers Domino Effect

June 26, 2016June 26, 2016 adminbenn, Brexit, corbyn, resignation, shadow cabinet0 comment

A meltdown is taking place in Labour’s Shadow Cabinet today, as the sacking of Shadow Foreign Secretary Hillary Benn triggers resignations by several key members of Jeremy Corbyn’s team. According to media reports, Benn was sacked in a midnight phone call, after he had apparently tried to rally support for a Shadow Cabinet revolt against leader Jeremy Corbyn during the Saturday. Corbyn has long been considered a lukewarm supporter of the EU, and he has been conspicuously absent for much of the campaign leading up to the June 23 Brexit referendum.…

European Commission UK Politics

Second Casualty: UK Commissioner Quits

June 25, 2016June 26, 2016 adminBrexit, commissioner, resignation0 comment

Jonathan Hill, former leader of the House of Lords, has turned in his resignation as the UK Commissioner in the European Commission in the wake of the UK Brexit referendum. As the European Commissioner responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, Hill was considered one of the most influential and important members of the Juncker commission. According to The Guardian, Hill’s departure “became a foregone conclusion after the vote for Brexit, because many European politicians oppose having a Briton in charge of financial services when the UK…

Financial Markets Jobs

Morgan Stanley to move 2,000 jobs out of London – or?

June 25, 2016June 26, 2016 adminBrexit, city of london, jobs, rumours, unemployment0 comment

Shortly after the official result of the Brexit referendum became known, BBC reported that according to anonymous sources, Morgan Stanley, one of the world’s largest financial services corporations, had already decided to move 2,000 employees from the City of London/Canary Wharf to Dublin and Frankfurt due to the British exit vote. This seemed to be the first of many such announcements from major companies. However, shortly after the newsflash from the BBC a spokesman for Morgan Stanley denied that any such plans to move employees from London exists. Thus it is still…