Lawmakers want reporters to know when they are being spied on (POLITICO)
By Mathieu Pollet · Jul 13, 2023 Lawmakers in the European Parliament’s civil liberties committee (LIBE) want to introduce an obligation for EU governments to inform journalists that are being spied on by security services and other people whose communications were accessed, according to new draft amendments to the EU’s media freedom law obtained by […]
Nigel Farage and the great anti-Brexit unbanking plot (POLITICO)
By Izabella Kaminska, Dan Bloom · Jul 5, 2023 LONDON — Like most banks these days, the Strand offices of Coutts, one of the U.K.’s most prestigious private banks known for banking British royalty, are open plan and mostly devoid of custom. Real-life engagement with its wealthy clientele, if it happens, is by appointment only. […]
In the Blind Spot (Dragnets — Ze Germanz — CBDCs)
Dear Subscribers, Welcome to the weekend, and hopefully — for the first time in a while — a relatively timely (but, no doubt, format-muddled) send-out. Sadly, until we find an alternative newsletter management system, we are stuck with the clunky and format-limited Mailchimp service, which seems to ensure that almost every week something looks awful. […]
Shake on it: The utterly scientific Sintra guide to central bank governor toughness (POLITICO)
By Ben Munster · Jun 29, 2023 The ECB and other central banks famously communicate monetary policy almost entirely through covert signals and coded messaging. “More ground to cover” means rate hikes will probably continue after the summer. “Persistent” inflation means previous hikes have failed. “Data-driven approach” means the bank is just making it up […]
In the Blind Spot (Thinking like Surkov — The double budget constraint — The end of collateral)
Dear Subscribers, As noted yesterday, this weekend’s newsletter has been split in two to better cover breaking news elements this Sunday. One of those breaking news stories is what has been impolitely referred to all around the world as “What the f*** is going on in Russia?” A good place to start is this Washington […]
In the Blind Spot (48 hours at the Paris Air Show edition)
Dear Subscribers, We come into Saturday evening with an apparent would-be coup being unwound in Russia, but also in the grips of two other high intensity viral stories: news of a cage fight between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg and the sad news that the passengers on the Titan submarine could not be saved. The […]
EU’s trade ideals face ‘economic security’ reality check (POLITICO)
By Barbara Moens, Sarah Anne Aarup · Jun 19, 2023 The European Commission is preparing to ditch its long-held free-market ideals as geopolitics and U.S.-China competition elbow their way into the picture. On Tuesday, the EU’s executive will propose its economic security strategy, a new political paper which will be discussed by EU leaders at […]
In the Blind Spot (Travel deposits — Trussonomics redux — Digital pound)
Dear Subscribers, welcome to another Blind Spot newsletter. This week, I’m afraid to say, has proven a bit of a comedy of errors on my end. Maybe it’s the heat? It all started to go pear-shaped earlier this week, after a nightmare speaking engagement where I was asked to give a U.K. economic outlook to […]
Non-performing banker: The mysterious swindling of the EU and the Bank of Italy (POLITICO)
By Ben Munster · Jun 16, 2023 ROME — Italian courts are nearing the end of a puzzling and long-running drama around an elusive former Bank of Italy economist who plundered hundreds of thousands of euros while advising an EU committee. From 2009 to 2012, the economist, referred to here as “G.” as his name […]
Aviation’s rebound clouded by COVID hangover (POLITICO)
By Mari Eccles · Jun 15, 2023 BRUSSELS — Airlines are falling over themselves to trumpet what a great summer they’re expecting. “The message from the top is that aviation is back,” Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr told POLITICO this week. “We’ve seen nothing like this in 100 years in terms of the turnaround. Demand is […]