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In memory of Mike Moore

In News by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

OPEN Advisory Board member Mike Moore sadly passed away on 2 February. Mike had an illustrious career, as the trade minister of New Zealand who opened its economy up to the world in the 1980s, as his country’s prime minister, as the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation who launched the Doha Round and brought China into the WTO in late 2001, and as New Zealand ambassador to the US during the …

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Mobility matters

In Blog by Sam LoweLeave a Comment

Even in a digital age, trading services often requires people to move too, says Sam Lowe The internet makes the world feel smaller. Gone are the days when sending documents overseas took months, or paying for a 20-minute call to a supplier in the Philippines required taking out a second mortgage. Yet services trade is still constrained by geography – a 10% increase in distance between countries tends to reduce services …

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Out with Orban

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

Plus: the right Canadian model for Brexit Britain; the coming trade war over European cars For all her faults, Angela Merkel has done more to help refugees in recent years than any other European leader. So it is incongruous – indeed, shameful – that the German Chancellor’s party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), is in the same political group in the European Parliament as Fidesz, the party of Hungary’s vehemently xenophobic …

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The right Canadian model for Brexit Britain

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

Britain has much to learn from Canada’s modest realism in negotiating with a neighbouring economic giant By Jack Graham “Britain clings to imperial nostalgia as Brexit looms” (Washington Post). “Whatever form Brexit eventually takes it is a rearward step into an imagined past” (Globe and Mail). “With Brexit, [Britain] seems to be embracing an introverted irrelevance” (New York Times). Having moved from the UK to Toronto last summer, I’ve been struck by the fact …

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The new global disorder; is Berlin the new London?; year in review

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

The new global disorder Season two of The Trump Show. Season three of Brexit Breakdown. Part five of Homicide: Australian PM. 2018 has been another eventful year – and not just on Netflix. There’s also an edgy new French drama, Gilets Jaunes. A terrifying new Brazilian telenovela, Comandante Bolsonaro. Meanwhile a long-running German series, the Merkel Mysteries, has been cancelled. And much else besides. Yet when historians look back at 2018, it is likely …

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Our open world is under threat; the business case for employing refugees; the new global talent race

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

Trump. Brexit. Salvini. Trade wars. Border walls. The Great Firewall of China. America First. Italians First. New Zealand First. After decades in which our world has become ever more closely connected as people, products, money and data criss-cross borders ever more intensively,  resurgent nationalists now seek to close borders and stamp on difference. It is tragic, though perhaps not surprising, that foreigners are increasingly scapegoated for all manner of primarily domestic problems. Immigrants are …

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How do we persuade sceptics of the value of immigration?; overcoming the politics of pessimism

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

Image thanks to Max Pixel By Philippe Legrain Openness to immigration is a good thing, as I hope you agree. But how can we persuade moderate sceptics? Presenting rational arguments and evidence is important, but often insufficient. As part of its excellent Open Future series, The Economist has published an open essay by Philippe Legrain on this topic. The first part is out today, and the subsequent parts will feature readers’ best …

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Who said populism had peaked? Plus Global Compact, steel tariffs & more

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

Following the Brexit vote and Trump’s victory in 2016, many feared that a populist wave would sweep through Europe. But with the decisive victory of Emmanuel Macron over Marine Le Pen in France’s presidential election last year, anxiety quickly morphed into complacency. Yet France came perilously close to a presidential run-off between far-right and far-left anti-EU populists. Austria’s election was won by a conservative party that has adopted much of …

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Highlights of 2017, Prospects for 2018

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

The “highlights” of 2017 are mostly lowlights.  The year began with the inauguration of a racist US president who pledged to build a border wall to keep out Mexican “killers and rapists”, ban Muslims from entering America and tear up the liberal international order in favour of an America First strategy of nationalism, protectionism and xenophobia. While many of Trump’s actions have been symbolic, his clampdown on refugees and immigrants is very real.  2017 was …

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Brexit: Sufficient progress, Irish fudge, much still to do

In Blog by Philippe LegrainLeave a Comment

“Sufficient progress” has been made on the terms of the UK’s orderly withdrawal from the EU to move on to discussing the framework of their future relationship next year. That is the European Commission’s recommendation to EU leaders who meet at the European Council on 14-15 December. Barring unforeseen hitches, that means negotiations can soon move on to discussing the post-Brexit transition period that the UK has requested and the …

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