Current Affairs

By constraining the powers of executives and developing a political culture of accountability, national parliaments play a key role in the fight against corruption. However, their normative powers may be marginalized in the process of democratic consolidation. Based on original research from three European states, Emilija Tudzarovska-Gjorgjievska argues that weak parliaments contribute to the vicious […]

24-hours after the EU referendum of 24 June 2016, I posted this on my blog: ‘Just over half of those who voted bought manky lies dressed up as a better life after Brexit. ‘They were told they’d get their country back. Their lives would be transformed. More jobs, homes, schools and hospitals. Less migrants. No […]

On Monday, 10th Feb, I attended the UCL’s European Careers Event 2020. It was organised for graduates, particularly of the UCL and others. Since I am not an institutionalised academic, I do not have a piece of first-hand knowledge to what talks are taking places in the European Studies Departments across the country about the […]

36 hours. That’s about how long we actually had a wide-spread debate about what’s actually in the Withdrawal Agreement, back when it was agreed late in 2018. Yes, it’s been thrown around in debate ever since, but it was only for that brief window that the substance got a decent sounding and consideration in the […]

Change is coming to Brexit. At the end of next week, the UK will leave the European Union, having now completed the passage of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill through the Lords: EU ratification is a given. But there is another, broader change coming too. The constellation of politicians, commentators and journalists who were brought together […]

Transition remains the Cinderella of Brexit: unnoticed by the ugly sisters of Withdrawal and the New Relationship, but actually rather important. This might have been understandable during the chaos of the past year, when most political efforts were being diverted into securing UK ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement, but it seems much less so now, […]

What are the major changes and transformations affecting higher education worldwide? And what are the challenges for higher education systems and institutions in the 21st century? Encyclopedia of International Higher Education Systems and Institutions is a major reference work providing comprehensive answers to these and other questions. Over the past years, many researchers from around […]

French transport strikes bear a “striking” resemblance with Hollywood blockbusters.  Unlike Star Wars episodes, they are not numbered, but they are released at similar intervals, draw large crowds, and you get easily lost between sequels and prequels. This year’s episode seems particularly serious. If the trade unions don’t even respect the unwritten rule of letting […]

Last week’s election appears to be bringing the first phase of Brexit towards a close. The resounding majority won by the Conservatives sets the door wide open for the ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which in turn will result in the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union on 31 January 2020, some four-and-a-half years […]

The LibDems, then the SNP, followed by Labour, made a catastrophic error of judgement in agreeing to hold yesterday’s general election, writes Jon Danzig, founder of the pro-Remain campaign, Reasons2Remain. Instead, the three parties – and others – could and should have worked together to resist Mr Johnson’s desperate plea to hold a new election. Then, […]