May 21, 2016
By Suzanne Lynch
It was June 2013 and Ireland (click here) was nearing the end of its six-month presidency of the European Union. At a meeting in Luxembourg, the then minister for trade Richard Bruton hailed an historic agreement. After months of behind-the-scenes negotiations, led mostly by Irish officials, EU member states had agreed to open talks with the US on an ambitious trade agreement.
A last-minute attempt by the French to exclude the heavily-subsidised French film industry from the negotiating mandate threatened to derail the sensitive talks at the 11th hour. Following tense negotiations, the rest of the EU’s member states bowed to French’s demands for “l’exception culturelle”, and the deal was done. EU trade ministers signed on the dotted line.
Three years later the EU-US trade deal is reaching a crucial phase. Experts on both sides of the Atlantic agree that a deal must be reached before the end of US president Barack Obama’s term. If not, plans for creating the world’s largest trade pact will be kicked down the road into the mandate of the next US president, with little hope of agreement in the near term....
It is a change in governance. I don't see the path forward. Changing the boundary lines of an entire continent is not a minor issue.
June 22, 2016
Even as the day for the referendum (click here) in Britain on whether it wants to remain in or leave the European Union comes closer, opinion polls are divided on the outcome and show that the result could go either way, making the contest a neck-and-neck fight between the two sides.
The Brexit debate, or the debate on the possible exit of Britain from the EU, has two sides: The 'Remain' side which believes that Britain should stay in the EU and the 'Leave' side which supports a Brexit.
Apart from politicians, celebrities have also been saying a lot of things about the Brexit issue.
According to YouGov, a website which displays trends on the basis of information collected from around four million people around the world, the latest trends show that 44 percent of people in Britain want to leave the EU, 42 percent want Britain to remain whereas the rest are undecided on the issue or will not vote in the referendum...
It is a perfect opportunity to end the TiPP process.
June 22, 2016
...The Risks Of Leaving (click here)
But those countries never had Britain's larger global ambitions, the other side argues.
"As a single country we would have minimal influence on world affairs. Does anyone seriously think the prospect of British sanctions would alarm [Russian President] Vladimir Putin, or have persuaded Iran to curtail its nuclear program?" Martin Fletcher, the former foreign editor of the Times of London, wrote in a Facebook post.
"We would be willfully removing ourselves from a single market of 500 million people without the faintest idea whether, or on what terms, we would be allowed to continue trading with 27 E.U. states who would want to punish us. Why on earth would we take such a monumental risk?" he added.
The "Leave" supporters claim that the E.U. has chipped away at Britain's sovereignty, and cutting ties would make Britain stronger and freer to act as it chooses. Their motto is "Take Control."....
It is a change in governance. I don't see the path forward. Changing the boundary lines of an entire continent is not a minor issue.
June 22, 2016
Even as the day for the referendum (click here) in Britain on whether it wants to remain in or leave the European Union comes closer, opinion polls are divided on the outcome and show that the result could go either way, making the contest a neck-and-neck fight between the two sides.
The Brexit debate, or the debate on the possible exit of Britain from the EU, has two sides: The 'Remain' side which believes that Britain should stay in the EU and the 'Leave' side which supports a Brexit.
Apart from politicians, celebrities have also been saying a lot of things about the Brexit issue.
According to YouGov, a website which displays trends on the basis of information collected from around four million people around the world, the latest trends show that 44 percent of people in Britain want to leave the EU, 42 percent want Britain to remain whereas the rest are undecided on the issue or will not vote in the referendum...
It is a perfect opportunity to end the TiPP process.
June 22, 2016
...The Risks Of Leaving (click here)
But those countries never had Britain's larger global ambitions, the other side argues.
"As a single country we would have minimal influence on world affairs. Does anyone seriously think the prospect of British sanctions would alarm [Russian President] Vladimir Putin, or have persuaded Iran to curtail its nuclear program?" Martin Fletcher, the former foreign editor of the Times of London, wrote in a Facebook post.
"We would be willfully removing ourselves from a single market of 500 million people without the faintest idea whether, or on what terms, we would be allowed to continue trading with 27 E.U. states who would want to punish us. Why on earth would we take such a monumental risk?" he added.
The "Leave" supporters claim that the E.U. has chipped away at Britain's sovereignty, and cutting ties would make Britain stronger and freer to act as it chooses. Their motto is "Take Control."....
