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New on the Open Europe Blog You know it's bad when even a former EU commissioner calls for a eurozone break-up  Open Europe Blog Are Cypriots really wealthier than Germans? Open Europe Blog Beyond the simplifications, what is Margaret Thatcher's European legacy? Open Europe Blog
Open Europe is this afternoon co-organising a panel discussion with the European Parliament representation in London, entitled “EU Police and Criminal Justice Measures: Better off in or out?” Speakers include Cecilia Malmström, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, and Open Europe Research Director Stephen Booth. Open Europe events   Daily Press Summary Leaked bailout documents show Cypriot economy is to shrink by 12.5% over two years; Cypriot Central Bank denies plans to sell gold as part of bailout deal According to leaked documents published by the FT’s Brussels blog, Cyprus’s total financing needs until the first quarter of 2016 have increased from €17bn to €23bn, but the EU/IMF contribution remains unchanged at €10bn – meaning that Cyprus will have to raise an extra €6bn. The documents also show that Cyprus’s real GDP is expected to shrink by 12.5% in 2013-14, while public debt is expected to peak at 126.3% of GDP in 2015 – it was 86.5% of GDP last year. As part of the deal, Cyprus would also sell €400m of its gold reserves, but this has been denied by the Cypriot Central Bank this morning. The German Bundestag is due to vote on the Cypriot bailout next Thursday. FT: Brussels blog FT: Brussels blog 2 FT: Brussels blog 3 Spiegel Expansión EUobserver La TribuneSüddeutsche Spiegel Der Standard Presse City AM FT Reuters FAZ Presse Guardian CDU’s parliamentary chief: Anti-euro Alternative for Germany party has to be taken seriously In an interview with Die Welt, Volker Kauder, the head of the CDU’s parliamentary faction, argues that “I take all [electoral] competition seriously, including the so-called Alternative for Germany. However, a party that wants to take responsibility must offer more than a return to the D-mark. This demand is above all damaging for Germany.” Meanwhile FAZ reports that the AfD’s membership is increasing rapidly, with 7,500 members ahead of its first party conference this weekend, 2,500 of whom have joined in the last two weeks. Welt FAZ  EU Commission criticises 13 member states for macroeconomic imbalances; Commission: France represents a vulnerability to the euro area as a whole The European Commission yesterday identified 13 member states suffering from macroeconomic imbalances – not including those already in a bailout programme - with Spain and Slovenia at risk of facing the EU’s new “excessive imbalance procedure” which can ultimately lead to fines. France was also singled out for criticism with the Commission warning that the country’s "public sector indebtedness represents a vulnerability, not only for the country itself, but also for the euro area as a whole". Meanwhile, in an interview with Les Echos, France’s new Budget Minister Bernard Cazeneuve says French public deficit will be brought below 3% of GDP by the end of 2014 – one year later than initially agreed with the European Commission. Times Guardian Telegraph BBC Independent Guardian WSJ EUobserver Irish Times European Voice BBC El País Cinco Días FAZ ARD Euractiv FAZ 2 Les Echos: Cazeneuve Le Monde Irish debt repayment extension to be discussed by EU Finance Ministers The Irish Independent reports on comments from Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem and EU Economic and Monetary Commissioner Olli Rehn that that a deal to extend Irish debt repayment dates needs to be reached at a meeting of eurozone finance ministers tomorrow. Any substantial change to the EU-ECB-IMF programme may require a Bundestag vote allowing the opposition SPD to press for the adoption by Ireland and Portugal of further measures to improve their own fiscal base, including the EU’s Financial Transaction Tax. Irish Independent Irish Times Irish Times David Cameron will make an unprecedented state visit with his wife and children to the country estate of Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor. The Prime Minister will discuss reforms of the European Union, the forthcoming G8 summit and the conflict in Syria.Telegraph In an interview with the Times, former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl said, “[Margaret] Thatcher wanted Europe, but a different Europe from that wanted by most of her European colleagues and me. From our point of view, this antagonism characterises British policy on Europe to this day.” Times Times: Interview Times: Leader Die Presse reports that Austrian Finance Minister Maria Fekter has attacked London for being a tax haven, saying that “What we demand for Cyprus, we also demand from the UK”.Presse Telegraph: Evans-Pritchard   In Greece figures for January 2013 show that unemployment for those aged 15-24 has risen to 59.3% according to new figures released by the Greek statistics office ELSTAT.ELSTAT Luxembourg announced plans to lift banking secrecy rules for EU citizens with savings in the country on Wednesday.The move marks a rapid shift in policy, following lobbying by Germany and the European Commission.City AM WSJ FT Süddeutsche Welt The Mail reports that new research has found that in the UK, workers from the countries that joined the EU in 2004 and later were 7% more likely to be in work than British-born people. In Germany, the Netherlands and Finland locally-born workers have a higher employment rate than migrant workers from the new EU countries, the study said. Open Europe Research Mail