Insights

This US election cycle, GC team members in the Washington, DC and London offices are holding a series of conversations on the elections and wider US policy issues, and how each might impact investors and companies on both sides of the Atlantic. Below is a brief extract from the third conversation in the series, which begins by looking at Super Tuesday and what the results…

US Senator Bernie Sanders’ emergence a strong prospect to win the Democratic presidential race has led to intense hand-wringing of the political class in recent weeks. Republicans claim to be aghast that Democrats would nominate a self-proclaimed socialist. Mainstream Democrats are concerned Sanders is too liberal to beat Trump. Wall Street firms are busy making a list of…

This US election cycle, GC team members in the Washington, DC and London offices are holding a series of conversations on the elections and wider US policy issues, and how each might impact investors and companies on both sides of the Atlantic. Below is a brief extract from the second conversation in the series, which begins by looking at the recent Sanders surge in the…

In a new series of interviews, members of Global Counsel's Asia team will interview thought-leaders in policy and business from across the region, focusing on key themes for Global Counsel including geopolitics, trade and technological developments and the impact on business and politics.

Britain’s new chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, will give his first budget on March 11th, less than four weeks after he was appointed, following the unexpected resignation of Sajid Javid. All budgets are important, but this one more than most, as Sunak must demonstrate that he is delivering on the commitment made by the Conservatives in the 2019 election to “level…

This week’s extraordinary European Council will again highlight the lack of common ground between national governments dealing with their own Eurosceptic pressures. As Charles Michel looks for a leader to articulate the European, rather than national interest, he may find an ally in the EU’s smallest member state and newest head of government.  

The clock is ticking to meet the European Commission’s aspirations for accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia. Ursula von der Leyen reiterated on Sunday that talks should be opened “if possible before the Zagreb Summit”, scheduled for May 5th-7th. Her characterisation of this “geostrategic” interest for the EU was no accident. It built on French President…

Boris Johnson is no fan of the BBC. In 2012, after being elected as mayor of London for a second term, he wrote that he sometimes felt that his chief opponent was the local BBC news and that “the prevailing view of BBC newsrooms is, with honourable exceptions, statist, corporatist, defeatist, anti-business, Europhile and, above all, overwhelmingly biased to the Left.”…

This US election cycle, GC team members in the Washington, DC and London offices are holding a series of conversations on the elections and wider US policy issues, and how each might impact investors and companies on both sides of the Atlantic. Below is a brief edited extract from the first conversation in the series, which begins by looking at the battle for the soul of…

 Brexit thus far has been a story of timetables. Its negotiating and political rhythm has been determined by deadlines, flexible and inflexible, and the potential cliff edges that lie beyond them.

Global Counsel held its second annual ‘Politics of…’ conference on 16 January 2020, focusing on trade. Panellists from across business, government and civil society debated the implications of dramatic political and technological change on trade policy. 

Energy Practice Lead, Ermenegilda Boccabella and Sustainability Senior Associate, Mollie Brennan share their impressions from COP25 in Madrid.

At the end of each year, the Global Counsel team has a tradition of sharing among ourselves a selection of our favourite articles (or podcasts) from the past year for Christmas reading. Two years ago, we decided to risk sharing the tradition. The response was positive enough to encourage us to do so again. 

European Competitiveness and Industry Benchmarking Report 2019 produced by The European Round Table for Industry (ERT) and Global Counsel shows how vital it is that Europe quickly unites behind an ambitious, long-term industrial strategy.

The world’s climate brethren are set to gather next week – not in Chile but in Madrid – for the 25th annual Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP for short). Each year the aim is to move further on the agenda of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for adapting to the impacts of climate change. This year, the…

The Commission’s ambitions to lead the world in action on climate change will continue to rub against member states’ imperatives to manage the economic costs. Under Frans Timmermans, a team of Commissioners therefore have a huge task of putting together a European Green Deal. The Commission is already clear this will prioritise strong environmental protection, support for…

The new Commission faces a complex European political landscape. Eurosceptic parties from many member states will put pressure on their governments after performing strongly in May’s European Parliament election, even if they are struggling to translate this into power in the parliament itself. Tensions have increased between eastern and western member states on migration…

On January 1st, Zagreb assumes the rotating presidency of the European Council. Its time at the helm will involve a number of firsts. It will be Croatia’s first presidency since becoming the newest member state in 2013. It will be the first presidency responding to Ursula von der Leyen’s new commission, itself entering office after a rocky start. It could be the first…