The EU comes to an agreement on Banking Union

European leaders met in a summit last week that led to an agreemetn on a banking union:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/18/us-eu-bankingunion-idUSBRE8BH0KZ20121218

Video from The Telegraph:

A week in Europe - from the extreme right to European integration and everything in between

I recently returned from a week-long trip to Europe.  First stop was London, where I started off by giving at lecture at the London School of Economics on my manuscript on anti-discrimination policy in Europe.  I had an appreciative audience, and several friends and colleagues were able to attend, including a former student from UT Austin.  I always appreciate being able to present my work to a European audience, being an American, I always wonder if I'm characterizing the issues in an appropriate way, and it's always nice to get feedback from people with a strong interest in the topic.

The next day was spent in a conference on the extreme right in Europe.  I have written about voting behavior and the radical right, so this was a chance to hear from those who worked on the ground to combat right-wing extremism.  This is an important topic in Europe, as violence against immigrants and ethnic minorities is on the rise during this time of fiscal crisis.  The Institute for Strategic Dialogue hosted the conference and has written a preliminary report on the issue as a prelude to in-depth country studies over the next year: http://www.strategicdialogue.org/Policy_Briefing_-_Far_Right_Extremism_FINAL.pdf

 

London is a lovely place to visit during the Christmas season and I enjoyed seeing the lights in the shopping districts.

 

No trip to London is complete without a stop at Harrods and Oxford Street

 

One of my more interesting stops during the half day I had to play tourist was at the British Library, where the room of treasures had everything from original Beattles lyrics to the Magna Carta and it's related documents.

After London, I flew to Berlin to attend a conference held at the Freie Universitaet Berlin, hosted by my colleagues Tanja Boerzel and Thomas Risse who head the KFG "The Transformative Power of Europe." I spoke again about the development of anti-discrimination policy in the EU, in the context of the diffusion of ideas from the U.S. to Europe. Here's the link to their website: http://www.polsoz.fu-berlin.de/en/v/transformeurope/

Will Britain Leave the EU?

Several stories in the New York Times and the Economist highlight the possibility that Britain may soon have a referendum on EU membership.

The Economist starts off with a story which emphasizes Britain, and in particular David Cameron's isolation within the EU
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21567940-british-exit-european-union-looks-increasingly-possible-it-would-be-reckless


The following story examines the how, why and implications of Britain leaving the EU:
http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21567914-how-britain-could-fall-out-european-union-and-what-it-would-mean-making-break

A story in the New York Times examines the leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party which is now finding its Euroskeptic positions to be in the mainstream:
http://www.nytimes.com/compendium/reader/FNF765KNIFVCMORBYLPX7QVWVZA/291/1214