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Europe
Blair's decision to give up chunk of EU rebate has cost the UK £9.3bn
The Telegraph reports that Tony Blair's decision to cut a large part of the UK's rebate from the EU budget has cost the economy £9.3billion. Figures calculated by House of Commons researchers show that Britain will have lost out on €10.5billion (£9.3billion) by not receiving the full rebate between 2007 and 2013, calculated at 2004 prices - equivalent to £344 for every household in Britain.
The article quotes Open Europe's Mats Persson, saying, "These £10 billion would certainly have come in handy at a time when the UK is facing a massive public deficit, and every tax penny counts. Taxpayers will not be pleased at this news." He added that Mr Blair had "naively agreed to give up large chunk of the UK's rebate from the EU budget, in return for vague promises of a root-and-branch reform of the EU's distorting and wasteful farm subsidy scheme".
The article notes that there are fears that the UK's rebate could be scrapped altogether by 2020, following a proposal included in a recent draft document from the European Commission.
Meanwhile, the News of the World featured a 'head-to-head' question and answer piece with William Hague and David Miliband, on the issue of Europe. Asked about the UK's rebate from the EU budget, William Hague pledged "Britain gets back very little EU cash compared with what we put in. Our rebate is to make up for that so it has to stay." Asked about Britain's contribution to the EU budget, Miliband said that, "through free trade, the UK benefits by around £25 billion a year" from being in the EU.
On Saturday morning Open Europe's Lorraine Mullally appeared on BBC Radio Scotland's Newstalk programme, to debate the merits and drawbacks of the European Union with a representative from the European Movement.
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Group of Conservative MPs warn of "all-out-war" unless a Conservative government shows "progress" on EU policy
The Independent on Sunday reported that "a powerful band of Eurosceptic Tory MPs" have given David Cameron an 18 month deadline to renegotiate Britain's relationship with the EU or face an "all-out war" for a referendum. The paper noted that Cameron has tried to buy more time by promising that the Conservatives' 2015 election manifesto would contain a promise for a referendum should the EU "move in the wrong direction". However a senior Conservative MP has said that Mr Cameron would have to move quickly in the first year and a half of his premiership - and had to show "real progress" on his promises. The MP said: "I don't think a promise of a referendum on Britain's relationship with the EU in more than five years will sit very well. He [Cameron] needs to make progress, within the first 18 months of his premiership. If he does, it will be his crowning glory, but if he doesn't, it will be a thorn in his side." Another backbencher said: "We have agreed to keep quiet on this before the election, but if things do not start happening in the first year or so, there will be all-out war for a referendum."
Speaking to the Andrew Marr show yesterday, Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague said that a Conservative government would not engage in a battle with Europe over Treaty reform for some years. He said: "There will be no instant bust up with Europe with a six month deadline or anything like that to achieve these objectives, because you have to find your moment to achieve these objectives whenever it may be. So we will possibly have to take our time in order to achieve those things. We recognise it's difficult and that's why we say these are things to look for over the lifetime of a parliament."
Saturday's Mail reported that, in a conference call with seven Conservative prospective Parliamentary candidates, Mr Hague was told that grassroots Conservatives are "spitting blood and feathers" over the decision not to hold a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. In the Sun, Trevor Kavanagh argues that "voters were promised a referendum on Britain's place in Europe - and they won't rest now until they get one".
Writing in the Guardian Jackie Ashley notes that the Conservatives' proposed Sovereignty Bill "will ensure a vigorous and amendable legislative tussle on the floor of the Commons...unless Cameron's whips are incredibly effective, we could be looking at a rerun of the more spectacular moments of the Major years." In the Mail, Peter Hitchens argues that Cameron's "'never again' proposals to limit EU power are politically illiterate and foredoomed."
Meanwhile, the Sunday Telegraph reported that Cameron has been warned by grassroots activists that he risks losing votes to UKIP, with Stuart Wheeler and Lord Kalms also predicting that he would lose support.
Independent on Sunday Sunday Telegraph Mail Telegraph Guardian: Ashley Mail: Hitchens OE blog
New report: EU's AIFM Directive is "poorly-constructed, ill-focused and premature"
A report commissioned by the economic committee of the European Parliament has criticised the EU's proposed AIFM Directive, designed to regulate hedge funds and private equity firms, for being "poorly-constructed, ill-focused and premature", noting that the Directive could impose substantial costs on companies far in excess of what the Commission predicted. The report - which was written by Europe Economics and which cites Open Europe's report on the AIFM Directive from September - concludes that even the "rationale for a directive of this form is weak" and criticises almost every aspect of the prposal. The report also suggests that it would be better to shelve the plans for the AIFM Directive until new banking regulation is finalised. "It could well be better to wait until the final form of banking regulation is clearer, and at that stage, as it were, 'fill in the holes' in respect of required regulation of bank counterparties," the report says. The Telegraph notes, "Although many politicians and lobby groups have raised concerns about the legislation, this report is doubly powerful since it is the first major internal challenge to the directive."
Meanwhile, in a speech last week, Lord Mandelson attacked the draft AIFM Directive, saying "We must be vigilant against burdening industry with excessive costs, and resist any moves that place restrictions on investor choice, leaving the EU open to accusations of protectionism. The EU must remain an attractive destination for venture capital."
Open Europe research Open Europe press release Europe Economics report Times Guardian Telegraph Weekend FT City AM City AM Sunday Telegraph
Leaders to carve up top EU jobs at Berlin Wall celebrations;
Brown's backing for Blair could cost Miliband EU Foreign Minster post
The Weekend FT noted that secretive negotiations on filling the EU's top jobs of President and Foreign Minster are to dominate today's celebrations of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The Times reports that Tony Blair has made a belated effort to revive his attempt to become President, making personal phone calls to EU leaders. The article notes that a close ally said: "Tony got to the stage where he had to court some people, if only to assess whether the game is up or not. He will never say never, but the mood is not very positive. Even supportive people are indicating the consensus is for a committee chairman not a chief."
Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy remains the favourite to get the job. The Economist's Charlemagne argues that "Without disrespect to Mr Van Rompuy, Europe should aim higher." Lord Mandelson has warned European leaders against opting for the lowest common denominator. He said: "If we keep on going for second or third best because the choice is less painful or difficult, in the end we are going to be losers."
Meanwhile, the Guardian and the Telegraph note that EU leaders are likely to rank Foreign Secretary David Miliband as the lead candidate for the EU's Foreign Minister role. Gordon Brown has so far backed Blair's bid rather than that of Miliband and the Telegraph quotes one EU official saying, "If Brown is not careful he might end up with neither."
The News of the World reported on the news that the EU is to spend £45 billion on the 'External Action Service', which will be headed by the new EU Foreign Minister. Writing in Europe's World, former Polish President Aleksander Kwaśniewski argues that European countries' very different histories mean EU governments often lack a firm basis for policy appraisals, adding: "there are diverging views on many of the global problems that are likely to remain the daily bread of European politics for some time yet."
Weekend FT Times Times: Analysis Economist: Charlemagne notebook FT: Munchau Irish Times EUobserver Guardian Telegraph Europe's World: Kwaśniewski Coulisses de Bruxelles
10 Conservative MEPs refuse to sign up to new pan-European party
The Sunday Times reported that some Conservatives are trying to establish a new pan-European party that would be eligible for up to €1 million in EU funding. The party, called Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists, could enable its MEPs to receive up to €15,000 (£13,400) on top of their current pay. As many as 10 Conservative MEPs are said to have refused to sign up to the new party. Robert Sturdy MEP said: "I refused to sign up as I can't possibly justify taking another €15,000 of taxpayers' money when my constituency is suffering a severe recession."
Conservatives to appoint minister for EU regulation
The Times reports that Mark Hoban, the Shadow Financial Secretary, is being lined up by Shadow Chancellor George Osborne to take responsibility for EU regulation.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Saturday's Guardian, French Foreign Minister Christine Lagarde said that a Conservative government would make little difference to Britain's pro-market stance in European talks over financial regulations. "The City is the City, whichever party is in power," she said.
Times Guardian Open Europe research
Bruce Anderson: The euro will come to be "a far greater preoccupation" than the Lisbon Treaty
Writing in the Independent, Bruce Anderson argues that, "In an EU which is not moving towards political union, the euro is a federalist anomaly. As such, it will fail. But in the interim, it could do a lot of damage. That will come to be a far greater preoccupation for British policy-makers than the Lisbon Treaty. We can only be grateful that this wretched government did not manage to lie and cheat us out of the Pound."
Iceland's EU bid falters as public support wanes
EUobserver notes that Iceland's Finance Minister, Steingrimur Sigfusson and leader of the government's junior coalition partner, the Left Green Movement, said last Tuesday at a meeting of the Nordic Council in Stockholm that while Iceland had applied to join, the people did not want to become members of the EU.
The Observer reported that the Conservatives are considering pulling out of the European Arrest Warrant if they arrive in government next year, a move which critics warn will create a new 'Costa del Crime'.
The European Commission has inquired with drugs company, GSK Pharma, whether it's possible to buy swine flue vaccines for its personnel, thereby violating its policy that "risk groups" should be protected first, argues news site Werktitel.
Werktitel
In a joint statement, the French and Polish governments have called on Europe to "increase its defence capacities", including through "the use of military means to project a European maritime power" and the "strengthening of financial solidarity between the member states of the EU to allow them to deploy larger contingents".
Writing in the Observer, Henry Porter argued that the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall "is the right moment to ask if we really know what's going on in Europe. For instance, how many have heard of the standing committee created by the Lisbon treaty that will set up the EU's first co-ordinated security policy, the plans for surveillance on a massive scale, the use of systems know as Adabts (automatic detection of abnormal behaviour and threats in crowded spaces) and sharing between DNA databases?"
Guardian: Porter Open Europe: How the EU is watching you OE blog
The Sunday Times reported that EU fraud investigators are conducting an inquiry into UKIP over its MEPs' use of expense allowances. The EU's anti-fraud body, Olaf, has sent officers to the UK, who were last week interviewing potential witnesses.
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The Telegraph notes that David Miliband has been accused by Jewish leaders of using anti-semitism as a "political football".
In Saturday's Express Patrick O'Flynn backed Lord Pearson of Rannoch to become the next leader of UKIP.
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On his Coulisses de Bruxelles blog Jean Quatremer notes that the top French Court has declared that EU directives can be invoked directly in the French legal order even if they haven't been implemented in national law yet.
Deutsche Welle reports that the President of the German SPD party, Sigmar Gabriel, has said that an EU ban on linking conditions on jobs with state aid, such as in the case of car manufacturer Opel, is a "crazy idea".
EU Commissioner Siim Kallas comments on EU Observer that, regarding the EU budget, "The bulk of errors are found in the payments made by national and regional authorities on behalf of the EU. These errors should have been prevented or detected by national control systems. They were not".
EUobserver List of EU beneficiaries
Simon Johnson, a former IMF Chief Economist, has said that the passing of the EU's Lisbon Treaty should accelerate moves towards a common EU seat on the IMF's board.
The FT reports that an analysis from the European Commission is to warn EU governments that EU public debt could be up to 100 percent of GDP by 2014 unless action is taken to restore fiscal discipline.
The Weekend FT contained a profile of EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes which suggested that "her political savvy and inherent toughness have come into their own in the financial crisis."
World
The WSJ reports that Gordon Brown lent his support to the Franco-German backed plan for a global tax on financial transactions. However, agreement at the G20 looks unlikely due to the US' opposition.
WSJ Times Mail Guardian FT City AM City AM: Editor's Letter Irish Independent
The Independent reports that arguments over bureaucratic detail may prevent a new global climate deal being struck in Copenhagen next month, specifically how any new Treaty would be structured in relation to the Kyoto protocol.
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