Research & Comparative studies

August 2020

Sharpening the Teeth of the Infringement Procedure

It has taken almost ten years for the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU, Court) to apply Article 260(3) TFEU. This allows it to impose a financial sanction…

Juan Diego Ramírez-Cárdenas Díaz

Briefing

June 2020

Procurement audit – helping to ensure public money is well spent in the crisis

Priorities in procurement audit need to be driven by the risk that value for money will not be secured in public procurement. Auditors need to change these priorities in response…

Michael Burnett

Paper

June 2020

The EU agenda and the right of initiative

Summary The Conference on the Future of Europe was to be launched on 9 May 2020 to debate the EU’s priorities, institutional matters and democratic processes. Despite its delay due…

Edward Best

Briefing

June 2020

Impending clash over effective return of illegally staying migrants

The EU needs to be more effective in returning third-country nationals who do not have the right to stay. Otherwise there can be no credible EU migration policy. The Commission’s…

Petra Jeney

Paper

January 2018

From ‘Global Europe’ to trade defence: the EU responds to Trump and China

Summary The election of Donald Trump and the growing assertiveness of China have raised a double challenge to the EU’s Common Commercial Policy (CCP). Since the WTO failed to deliver…

Wolfgang Koeth

Paper

January 2016

Can the Investment Court System (ICS) save TTIP and CETA?

Summary The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) currently under negotiation between the EU and the US continues to divide public opinion on both sides of the Atlantic. As the…

Wolfgang Koeth

Paper

March 2014

The New Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA II): Less Accession, More Assistance?

Summary The EU enlargement engine seems to have run out of political steam. Support within the member states for future enlargement is at all-time low, while some of the candidate…

Wolfgang Koeth

Paper

June 2013

Strategic planning tools for European negotiators to defend their national interests in the Council of the European Union

Summary Negotiating in the Council of the European Union poses some challenges that are common to most international negotiations but there are other dimensions that are a lot more specific.…

Frank Lavadoux

Paper

March 2010

The Lisbon Treaty stipulations on Development Cooperation and the Council Decision of 25 March 2010 (Draft) establishing the organisation and functioning of the European External Action Service

Summary The purpose of this brief is to examine whether HR/VP Ashtons’s Proposal for a Council decision establishing the organisation and functioning of the European External Action Service (EEAS) of March 2010…

Dr Simon Duke (UK)