U.K. Labour Party leader Ed Miliband arrived at the Élysée as the first British dignitary to call on French President François Hollande since the Socialist’s May election victory, generating speculation (and denials) that the …
UK
Tax the Rich? French and British Leaders Spar over Plans to Make Wealthy Pay Up
Criticism by U.K. Prime Minister Cameron of proposals by French President Hollande to hike tax rates on the rich sparked irritation in France; a closer look reveals that the U.K. is hardly the Thatcherite paradise the posh Cameron …
Coulson, Connery and Cable: A Day Of Media Scandal Hits Britain
From News of the World to the news of the day, media scandals in the U.K. have become practically de rigueur over the past few months. In fact, the phone-hacking scandal and the subsequent parliamentary, public and police …
The Best (and Wackiest) Royal Jubilee Souvenirs
From queen-themed cookies to Union Jack umbrellas, the Brits are offering every kind of keepsake in celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 60-year reign.
Why Voters in Europe Want a Change of Tactics in the Euro Crisis
Given the catastrophic mantra rising in media reports and from certain pundits, one contrarian point needs to be made clear: democracy can’t and won’t kill the debt-stricken euro. As Europeans at the ballot box are …
Suspended British Lord Denies Offering a Bounty for Obama and Bush
Scandal has once again landed Lord Nazir Ahmed, a British Labour peer, into the hotseat. According to Pakistan’s Express Tribune, Ahmed was speaking at a business reception in Haripur on April 15 when he mentioned the bounty …
Reading the Riots: Report Highlights Issues That Led to Britain’s Unrest
For nearly a week last summer, some of the poorest neighborhoods of London were ablaze – both literally and figuratively – with riots and chaos, as hordes of the city’s youth destroyed and looted property. What began as a …
For Now, the Eurozone and the Markets Pooh-pooh the Downgrades. But the Long-Term Looms
Modestly positive trading on European stock markets Monday morning appeared to confirm what euro zone leaders had predicted for weeks: that the decision Friday by Standard & Poor’s to cut the credit rating of nine European …
Sarkozy’s Tobin Tax Push: Wooing French Voters and Annoying E.U. Leaders
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has a knack of vexing his European partners—and he’s demonstrated that talent again with his pledge to unilaterally impose a so-called “Tobin Tax” on financial market transactions in France if …
Yesterday’s Gone: Euro Optimism Goes Flat and Here Comes 2012
As has become common during the nearly two years of Europe’s escalating debt crisis, reasons for guarded optimism that surfaced this week are being replaced with concern and doubt. In the wake of last week’s uplifting news …
The French on a Credit Downgrade Threat: Pick on Britain
Tis the season—for painful downgrades by credit agencies that is, as Thursday’s move by Fitch targeting six of the world’s largest banks again shows. And indeed, because such action is now so common, the big question …
Crunch Time for the Euro and Europe: Taking Note of the Elephant
Elephant, meet room.
Doubt and despair returned to Europe by Tuesday despite positive reaction a day earlier to the French-German proposals to save the teetering euro. The reason? The pachyderm in the room that markets see all …
Is Sarkozy and Merkel’s New Debt Proposal The Beginning of The End To The Euro Crisis?
The details of the campaign by France and Germany to save the euro became a little clearer Monday though substantial questions about it remain as the week winds toward a European Union summit on the euro crisis summit on Friday. …