Published on
8 March 2011
Posted in Ethics in Business, Europe, Human Rights, Legal Affairs, Public Policy, Social Commentary
From a guest blogger: If I were to describe a friend as possessed of ‘discriminating taste’ many would think I had proffered a compliment. Images of a man who knows his Virgil from his Wagner come to mind, not to mention the knowledge that ‘V’ and ‘W’ in those names should be pronounced in the […]
Published on
11 February 2011
Trying to define multiculturalism is rather like trying to pin tomato seeds down on a plate. So it was with some interest that I listened to David Cameron’s much heralded Munich speech in which he argued that ‘the doctrine of state multiculturalism’ had failed, and that Britain needs to foster a stronger sense of shared […]
Published on
9 February 2011
Posted in Europe, Political Economy, Public Policy, World Affairs
From a guest blogger who is a Swedish National: What is so fascinating about the Nordic countries, besides their natural beauty, polar lights, and, allegedly beautiful blondes? To the foreign observer, the region seems to be filled with tranquil mystery churning out high-tech goods, economic growth and happy people. As The Economist rightly notes, this […]
Published on
7 February 2011
Posted in Civil Liberties, Europe, Human Rights, Legal Affairs, Liberty, Public Policy, World Affairs
Speculation in the press currently reports that the government are poised to allow MPs a free vote on the issue of whether prisoners should be allowed to vote in UK elections, after the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that the UK’s blanket ban on prisoner voting breaches human rights. Setting aside the specific […]
Published on
8 December 2010
Posted in Civil Liberties, Europe, World Affairs
From a guest blogger: One of the most surprising decisions of the new Coalition government has been its choice to opt-in to the new European Investigation Order (EIO) proposed by the European Union (EU). This directive would replace the current system of mutual legal assistance (MLA) with a system whereby one member state can require […]
Published on
17 May 2010
Posted in Europe, Ireland, Political Economy, World Affairs
From a guest blogger: Chancellor Merkel sees the Euro currency crisis in this light. She sees it as speculator-driven and insists that it must be beaten – thus the €750billion package, one cannot yet call it a facility – to reassure the market. However, the true problem of the Euro is not speculation. Recent speculation […]
Published on
24 February 2010
Posted in Europe, Political Economy, World Affairs
Finally, after many years of constructing Potemkin villages, the facade seems to have fallen in. Not only have irresponsible banks and individuals had to face up to the consequences of their behaviour over the past decade, but also irresponsible sovereign countries are now being forced to do the same. Greece has long had structural problems […]
Published on
10 February 2010
A most interesting immigration case in which a judge in Tennessee granted political asylum to a German piano teacher and his family may have dented German-American bilateral relations. The family in question home-schooled its children, which is not generally permitted in Germany. The parents’ determination had had repercussions there: massive fines imposed, police intrusion into […]