Will May put country or party first?
Slowly but surely public opinion is turning against Brexit. Should we drop the whole idea or are we moving towards a second referendum on the terms? Murray Ritchie takes a look. Brexit…
European Union
Britannia makes waves with £20bn ‘down-payment’
Since Britain voted to leave the EU a vocal group of conservative opinion leaders have been urging the Australian government to take a proactive role in supporting the British decision in every…
EU overhauls space policies
More than 10 per cent of the European Union’s GDP is already dependent on space-related services and major investments by the EU have enabled progress that no member state could have achieved…
Immigration: the ugly face of Brexit and beyond
A growing tide of desperate people seeking sanctuary and a surging anti-immigrant sentiment among the native populations of some nations will lead to an even greater crisis in Europe, writes Geoff Kitney….
The art of the win-win negotiation
Or as John Egan discovers, in diplomatic parlance, it is the art of compromise. It seemed that the time for talking was running out at the OECD yesterday. President Donald Trump’s most…
Italian storms darken European horizon
A new “anti-system” political coalition in Italy is stirring up the relative tranquillity of the Eurozone economy. Banks and businesses are fastening their seatbelts and preparing for a bumpy ride, John Egan…
How much does your neighbour earn?
John Egan takes a look at the complexities entailed in answering the question. If you would like to know how well off you are, you do not have to look far –…
When reality bites
Is Prime Minister Theresa May resigned to Customs Union membership for the UK after Brexit? Murray Ritchie suspects the answer is ‘yes’. First it was the judges who were “enemies of the…
Shifting sands of scientific progress
The economic, commercial and geo-political status of nations is derived from their scientific and technological prowess. A new report charts how this balance of power has altered since the turn of the…
Nitrate: there’s something in the water
The United Kingdom’s four nations have the highest river nitrate concentrations in Europe. The European Environment Agency is demanding change, writes James Fitzgerald. The UK’s chemical-intensive farming methods have caught us between…