June 2016 - l'Européenne de Bruxelles

Verhofstadt: E.U. must move forward with a thorough reform of our outdated institutions and policies

June 30, 2016June 30, 2016 3357 views

Guy Verhofstadt, Belgian member of the European Parliament, leader of the Alliance of liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) group, and former Belgium prime minister, speaks about the future of the European Union. In his opinion, the EU must get rid of the excessive bureaucratic institutions and act to survive. His thoughts are summarized in the book ‘Europe’s Last Chance’ which will see the book-stands in the nearest future. According to Verhofstadt Brexit should not be viewed as a catastrophe itself. Quite the opposite: it offers an opportunity to forge…

Why we think the EU will survive

June 29, 2016 3358 views

On June 23, the British electorate, once again, confounded the pundits and bookmakers by voting, 51.9 per cent against 48.1 per cent , to leave the European Union (EU). The British had joined the EU in 1973. In a referendum in 1975, the British electorate had voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU. In the aftermath of Brexit – or British exit from the EU – a new wave of euroscepticism has seized Europe. The leader of the French National Party, Ms Marine Le Pen, has demanded a referendum in…

Letwin to helm Whitehall Brexit team

June 29, 2016 3358 views

Cabinet Office minister Oliver Letwin is to lead a cross-Whitehall unit to prepare for Brexit ahead of the election of David Cameron’s replacement as prime minister. Cameron told MPs that the EU unit would bring together officials and policy expertise from across the Cabinet Office, the Treasury, the Foreign Office and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. He said the Brexit negotiations would be the “most complex and most important task that the British civil service has undertaken in decades”, so the unit would report to the whole Cabinet…

Lloyds announces 525 job losses

June 29, 2016 3358 views

The bank, 9% owned by the taxpayer, said the cuts were part of 9,000 reductions announced in 2014. A statement said 115 new roles will be created across the affected business areas. “As part of our Group Strategic Review, we also announced 200 branch closures over the three-year period. Today we can confirm that we will be closing 23 branches during October 2016 as part of this strategy. Branches will continue to play an important role in our multi-channel approach to meeting customer needs and we expect to continue to…

House price growth jumped ahead of EU referendum

June 29, 2016 3358 views

Property up 5.1 per cent in June compared to same period in 2015, but post-Brexit uncertainty remains. House price growth accelerated in June, even despite the fear – and then reality – of a Brexit victory at the EU referendum last week. Average UK property valuations rose 0.2 per cent month-on-month, the same rate of growth as May, says Nationwide’s house price index. However, they jumped 5.1 per cent year-on-year, up from 4.7 per cent last month, to £204,238. Nationwide’s chief economist, Robert Gardner, said it was too soon to…

Belgium captain Eden Hazard misses training but Coach not concerned

June 28, 2016 3358 views

Belgium captain Eden Hazard was a noticeable absentee from Tuesday’s training session as his team prepared for its quarterfinal match against Wales at the European Championship. Belgium captain Eden Hazard was a noticeable absentee from Tuesday’s training session as his team prepared for its quarterfinal match against Wales at the European Championship. Coach Marc Wilmots said that Hazard, who inspired Belgium to its 4-0 victory over Hungary on Sunday, had a muscle problem. “Eden felt a slight spasm in the quadriceps at halftime against Hungary,” Wilmots said. “He is now…

Brexit, pursued by Brussels

June 28, 2016 3358 views

As the dust begins to settle following the chaos after the referendum results, spinouts, startups and government-backed businesses are facing an uncertain future. Author: Thierry Heles Some experts have argued that we should have seen it coming: the signs of the British public leaning towards exiting the European Union were there, fuelled by anger and disillusionment, and yet a sense of cautious, naïve optimism prevailed. When Boris Johnson, the former mayor of pro-remain London and prime minister hopeful, argued in the Daily Telegraph yesterday that “the pound remains higher than…

Stocks Rise for First Time After Brexit Hammering

June 28, 2016 3358 views

European shares jumped 2.4 percent in early trading having plunged over 10 percent since Friday. Banks and insurers, which have suffered the most in the rout, led the fightback. Barclays jumped 6.3 percent, Deutsche Bank climbed 3.5 percent, Credit Agricole and Italy’s UniCredit were both up 7 percent and Spain’s Bankia jumped 9.5 percent. Battered sterling also got a reprieve. It rose 0.8 percent to $1.3335 following the biggest two-day slide in the post-1973 era of floating exchange rates, which saw it slump to a 31-year low of $1.3122 on…

Belgian Beer Museum Soon To Be Built in Brussels’ Former Stock Exchange

June 28, 2016 3358 views

Beer museums have been on the rise recently. A little more than a month ago we covered Chicago’s soon-to-be-built beer museum and now we traverse the Atlantic Ocean to shift our focus onto the country of Belgium and its soon-to-be-built temple of malty, hoppy, and yeasty suds. After over a year of deliberations Belgian authorities have enacted plans to build a beer museum dedicated solely, of course, to Belgian products. Belgium has the greatest diversity of beer in the world, which makes beer a central part of the culture and…

EU talks tough as Cameron heads to Brussels

June 28, 2016 3358 views

Britain can either trigger Article 50 or get left out in the cold. If David Cameron was planning his dream dinner party, it probably wouldn’t involve giving a speech to the other 27 EU members on how exactly the UK got into this mess. But that’s what he has to do this evening, as the EU’s post-Brexit summit begins in Brussels. After his initial statement, Cameron will return to London while the other leaders discuss how to proceed. The discussion will primarily pertain to the triggering of Article 50, which officially begins the…