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Open Europe was a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
centre-right Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and ...
eurosceptic policy
think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
with offices in London and Brussels, merging with the
Policy Exchange Policy Exchange is a British conservative think tank based in London. In 2007 it was described in ''The Daily Telegraph'' as "the largest, but also the most influential think tank on the right". ''The Washington Post'' said Policy Exchange's re ...
think tank in 2020. Its stated mission was to "conduct rigorous analysis and produce recommendations on which to base the UK's new relationship with the EU and its trading relationships with the rest of the world." It promoted democratically grounded economic, trade and investment policies which foster growth, employment and freedom under the rule of law. The think tank described itself as being "non-partisan and independent" but was also described as "eurosceptic". The think-tank was set up in 2005 prior to the
Lisbon Treaty The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
by a group of British business to oppose further centralisation of power in the EU. It was a proponent of a flexible model for further European integration, allowing for EU member states to integrate with each other to different degrees and for powers to also be returned from the EU to member states. It adopted a neutral stance in the 2016 EU referendum in the UK. In the wake of the UK's vote to leave the EU, Open Europe's research programme shifted to focus on three key aspects: the UK's new relationship with the EU, including trade, security and political cooperation; the most important opportunities for new trading relationships with nations outside the EU; productive international cooperation across areas such as immigration, research and development, cross-border investment and financial services. Open Europe was described by ''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...
'' in 2010 as "the Eurosceptic group that controls British coverage of the EU". It was ranked number 1. in the "International Affairs" Category in 2012 by ''Prospect'' magazine.


History

Open Europe was launched on 20 October 2005 by Rodney Leach in London by business people to oppose the return of the then
EU Constitutional Treaty The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE; commonly referred to as the European Constitution or as the Constitutional Treaty) was an unRatification, ratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for ...
that became the
Lisbon Treaty The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
, Open Europe's stated aim was "to contribute positive new thinking to the debate about the future direction of the European Union". Rodney Leach and many of the founding supporters of Open Europe had previously backed the Business for Sterling campaign to stay out of the Euro. Directors of Open Europe have included
Neil O'Brien Neil John O'Brien (born 6 November 1978) is a British politician who was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Primary Care and Public Health in September 2022. He was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Harborough in 2017. ...
(2005–2008), Lorraine Mullally (2008–2010), Mats Persson (2010–2015), Stephen Booth and Raoul Ruparel as Co-Directors (2015–2017), and Henry Newman (2017–2019). Several former Open Europe Directors have gone on to work in government, including Persson (former Europe advisor to David Cameron) and Ruparel (former Europe advisor to Theresa May). The think tank opposed the
Lisbon Treaty The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
and supported granting a referendum on the treaty through its "I Want A Referendum" campaign. Open Europe was neutral during the 2016 referendum campaign on EU membership. Its aim in doing so was to "strip the debate of adversarial hyperbole and substitute solid factual ground on which the British people can make this important decision." Since the referendum, it has produced a new report, entitled "Striking a Balance", which sets out its vision for a new UK-EU partnership after Brexit. It has also recently produced a report on the economic consequences of a No Deal Brexit and how they could be mitigated. On 7 February 2020, Open Europe announced it would close and its remaining contributors would join the
Policy Exchange Policy Exchange is a British conservative think tank based in London. In 2007 it was described in ''The Daily Telegraph'' as "the largest, but also the most influential think tank on the right". ''The Washington Post'' said Policy Exchange's re ...
thinktank. "The exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union last Friday marked the beginning of an important new chapter for Britain. It also marked the end of the story for Open Europe, which will be closing." A more extensive history of the think tank was also published by the longtime head of its Brussels office, Pieter Cleppe.


Management and funding

Open Europe was a private company limited by guarantee without share capital. Its final chairman was
Simon Wolfson Simon Adam Wolfson, Baron Wolfson of Aspley Guise (born 27 October 1967), is a British businessman and currently chief executive of the clothing retailer Next plc, as well as a Conservative life peer. He is the son of the former Next chairman, ...
, the chief executive of the clothing retailer
Next plc Next plc (styled as NEXT) is a British multinational clothing, footwear and home products retailer, which has its headquarters in Enderby, England. It has around 700 stores, of which circa 500 are in the United Kingdom, and circa 200 across Eu ...
. Open Europe received no funding from any government, the EU, NGO or public company. It was funded entirely by private donations and a partial list of its supporters was available on its website. The group was nominally independent and did not have a partisan affiliation. Its supporters included business people operating in every sector and across both the UK and Europe, as well as former diplomats and high-profile figures from across the professions.


Activities

Open Europe regularly published original research aimed at promoting new ideas among key EU policy makers, business people and academics. Open Europe's experts regularly appeared in the international media, providing analysis on Brexit and UK and EU politics. Open Europe holds regular seminars and discussions on
Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC ...
and EU reform. Speakers at Open Europe events have included
William Hague William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
, Vincent Cable,
Gisela Stuart Gisela Stuart, Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston (''née'' Gschaider; born 26 November 1955) is a British-German politician and life peer who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Edgbaston from 1997 to 2017. A former member of the Lab ...
,
Dominic Raab Dominic Rennie Raab (; born 25 February 1974) is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Secretary of State for Justice, and Lord Chancellor since October 2022, having previously served from 2021 to ...
,
John Bruton John Gerard Bruton (born 18 May 1947) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 1994 to 1997, Ambassador of the European Union to the United States from 2004 to 2009, Leader of Fine Gael from 1990 to 2001, Leader o ...
,
Norman Lamont Norman Stewart Hughson Lamont, Baron Lamont of Lerwick, (born 8 May 1942) is a British politician and former Conservative MP for Kingston-upon-Thames. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1990 until 1993. He was created a life peer in ...
,
James Brokenshire James Peter Brokenshire (8 January 1968 – 7 October 2021) was a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party, he served in Theresa May's cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2016 to 2018, ...
,
Elmar Brok Elmar Peter Brok (born 14 May 1946) is a German politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1980 until 2019, who is best known for his role as chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs. He is a mem ...
,
Nick Boles Nicholas Edward Coleridge Boles (born 2 November 1965) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Grantham and Stamford from 2010 to 2019. He was a member of the Conservative Party until 2019. Before entering Parliament ...
, and
Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament from ...
. In April 2018, Open Europe held an event with the Conservative MP
Jacob Rees-Mogg Jacob William Rees-Mogg (born 24 May 1969) is a British politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Somerset since 2010. Now a backbencher, he served as Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council f ...
on Brexit, the EU, and Conservative Party politics. At the event, Rees-Mogg described Prime Minister
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cabi ...
's plan for a "customs partnership" with the EU as "cretinous". He argued that any post-Brexit immigration system that gave preference to EU migrants was "racist", and also criticised the House of Lords for rejecting parts of the
EU Withdrawal Bill The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (also known as the Great Repeal Act) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provides both for repeal of the European Communities Act 1972, and for parliamentary approval to be require ...
, saying: "There is a problem with the House of Lords in that it is very condescending towards the democratic vote. They seem to think that they know better than 17.4million people... their lordships are playing with fire and it would be a shame to burn down the historic house". The event was extensively covered in the national media. The organisation has previously conducted polling on EU-related issues at both at a national and European level, including a two-part Open Europe/
YouGov YouGov is a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In 2007, it acquired US company Polimetrix, and sinc ...
Deutschland poll on "German Voters Sentiments on Europe" ahead of the
2013 German federal election Federal elections were held on 22 September to elect the members of the 18th Bundestag of Germany. At stake were all 598 seats to the Bundestag, plus 33 overhang seats determined thereafter. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany/ Christian ...
, and an Open Europe/
ComRes Savanta ComRes is a market research consultancy based in London, England. Established in 2003 as Communicate Research Ltd, ComRes was a founding member of the British Polling Council in 2004, and is one of the UK's best known polling companies. ...
poll investigating the UK electorate's relationship with the EU. In 2013 Open Europe organised public simulated negotiations over reform of the European Union, and the UK's relationship with it, in a so-called "wargame". The think tank published several studies on the impact of regulation, including a 2010 study analysing more than 2,000 Impact Assessments. It estimated that in 2009, EU regulation introduced since 1998 cost the UK economy £19.3 billion, accounting for 59% of the total cost of regulation in Britain in that year. The study also estimated the cumulative cost of EU regulation since 1998 at £124 billion, 71% of the total cost. In 2008, research by Open Europe claimed that 96 percent of the text of the Lisbon Treaty is the same as the rejected European Constitution, based on a side-by-side comparison of the two texts.


EU Reform Conference

On 15–16 January 2014, Open Europe and the Fresh Start Project organised a "Pan-European Conference for EU reform" for delegates from the UK and Europe. The Conference was opened by the UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer
George Osborne George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the ...
delivering his first set-speech on Europe while in Government, and marking the first major speech on Europe by a senior UK Conservative Minister since the UK Prime Minister David Cameron's 'Bloomberg' speech in January 2013. Additional speakers included
Maria Damanaki Maria Damanaki ( el, Μαρία Δαμανάκη) is a Greek politician, including former president of the Synaspismos party of the left and former state member of the Hellenic Parliament within the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK). She se ...
the European Commissioner for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs;
Rachida Dati Rachida Dati (; ar, رشيدة داتي, link=no; born 27 November 1965) is a French politician who served as Member of the European Parliament, representing Île-de-France. Prior to her election, she held the cabinet post of Keeper of the Sea ...
, a
Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
, the Mayor of the
7th arrondissement of Paris The 7th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''le septième''. The arrondissement, called Palais-Bourbon in a r ...
and Deputy President of the French
Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right List of political parties in France, political party in France that was one of the two major party, major contemporary political pa ...
(UMP) Party;
Frits Bolkestein Frederik "Frits" Bolkestein (; born 4 April 1933) is a retired Dutch politician and businessman who served as Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from 1990 to 1998 and European Commissioner for Internal Market from 199 ...
, Former
European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services The Commissioner for Internal Market is a member of the European Commission. The post is currently held by Commissioner Thierry Breton. Responsibilities The portfolio concerns the development of the 480-million-strong European single market, ...
; Peter Norman, Swedish Minister for Financial Markets; and Klaus-Peter Willsch, a German CDU Politician and member of the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...
. Dr Imke Henkel of German weekly ''
Focus Focus, or its plural form foci may refer to: Arts * Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in South Australia Film *''Focus'', a 1962 TV film starring James Whitmore * ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based ...
'' labelled the conference "potentially historic" by "leading towards a constructive British Europe policy, which provides the important impetus towards the necessary reforms of the European Community". Writing in the '' Sunday Telegraph'',
Iain Martin Iain James Martin (born 2 October 1971) is a Scottish political commentator, author and public speaker. He writes a weekly column for ''The Times'' and is co-founder, editor and publisher of ''Reaction'' - a news site providing analysis and opi ...
called it a "a hugely uplifting gathering", which "would simply not have taken place before the
euro crisis The European debt crisis, often also referred to as the eurozone crisis or the European sovereign debt crisis, is a multi-year debt crisis that took place in the European Union (EU) from 2009 until the mid to late 2010s. Several eurozone membe ...
almost brought about the collapse of the
single currency A currency union (also known as monetary union) is an intergovernmental agreement that involves two or more states sharing the same currency. These states may not necessarily have any further integration (such as an economic and monetary union, ...
".


Positions

The organisation has historically been seen as " eurosceptic," but was previously in favour of the UK remaining a member of a reformed EU. However, it was neutral in the UK EU referendum campaign in 2016. In June 2018, Open Europe published a report entitled ''Striking a Balance: A blueprint for the future UK-EU economic partnership''. The report argues that the UK should seek to remain closely aligned with the EU in goods regulations and trade after Brexit, but that it should be able to diverge in financial services regulations. The authors argue: "Giving up some control – or sovereignty – over goods regulation, is a price worth paying for strong market access. Manufacturers in highly regulated industries often follow EU rules anyway, in some cases even in the United States. But seeking to replicate the patchy Single Market in services would require the UK to give away too much control over its economy, for too little gain." Open Europe was opposed to the
Common Agricultural Policy The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is the agricultural policy of the European Union. It implements a system of agricultural subsidies and other programmes. It was introduced in 1962 and has since then undergone several changes to reduce the ...
of the European Union, saying it wastes money, distributes it inequitably (with not enough going to environmental protection), de-insentivises modernisation, and represents a major waste of resources that could be spent elsewhere. The group advocated full liberalisation, but conceded in a 2012 report that this was not politically realistic, and so proposed a compromise. They proposed a system of "agri-environmental allowances" which would be allocated according to environmental criteria and administered nationally. After complying with minimum standards, farmers would be free to opt out. EU level funding for rural development should be limited to only the poorest members states. Some agriculture related R&D funding would continue.


Reception

The Conservative MP
Kemi Badenoch Olukemi Olufunto Badenoch ( ; née Adegoke, 2 January 1980) is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for International Trade, President of the Board of Trade and Minister for Women and Equalities since 2022. She previously served i ...
wrote in December 2017 that "Open Europe has a long tradition of producing high quality research and analysis," and described its research on public attitudes to immigration as "excellent." Elsewhere, former Chancellor of the Exchequer
Norman Lamont Norman Stewart Hughson Lamont, Baron Lamont of Lerwick, (born 8 May 1942) is a British politician and former Conservative MP for Kingston-upon-Thames. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1990 until 1993. He was created a life peer in ...
has praised Open Europe's vision of a future UK-EU relationship, arguing that its proposals " eserveto be considered both in the UK and EU." Responding in October 2018 to Open Europe's report on the long-term economic consequences of a No Deal Brexit, the academics
Anand Menon Anand Menon (born September 1965) is Professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King's College London in the United Kingdom and was appointed in January 2014 as director of the UK in a Changing Europe initiative. He was a special advise ...
and
Jonathan Portes Jonathan Portes (born 18 April 1966) is Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the School of Politics & Economics of King's College, London and a senior fellow at UK in a Changing Europe. Early life and education Portes is the son of Richa ...
said that Open Europe had successfully used "mainstream modelling techniques and assumptions that, while certainly debatable and arguably overoptimistic, are not as bad as some. They are not remotely comparable to the simple factual, logical and legal errors that enabled some 'economists for free trade' to produce projections that no serious trade economist regards as credible at a Commons event." However, they argued that Open Europe had failed to pay sufficient attention to the short-term consequences of No Deal: "Should Britain leave the EU without a withdrawal agreement, then the immediate economics – and politics – of this would be far, far more disruptive and damaging than the Open Europe report implies." Writing in ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' in 2014, journalist Louise Armitstead argued that Open Europe had "developed a reputation for coming up with practical solutions" and showed there was "increasingly a solid and practical case for reform. Free trade and pro-markets politicians like Osborne can now criticise Brussels with a real chance of being listened to." In December 2012, Germany's ''
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung The ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung'' (; ''FAZ''; "''Frankfurt General Newspaper''") is a centre-right conservative-liberal and liberal-conservativeHans Magnus Enzensberger: Alter Wein in neuen Schläuchen' (in German). ''Deutschland Radio'', ...
'' ran a feature on Open Europe, in which its London correspondent wrote that Open Europe was "leaving its mark on the British discussion about Europe like no other". He added that it "dishes it out to all sides. EU critics eagerly seize on calculations of how much Brussels regulations have cost the UK or how much member states could save from reforming the EU's regime of
agricultural subsidies An agricultural subsidy (also called an agricultural incentive) is a government incentive paid to agribusinesses, agricultural organizations and farms to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural commodities, and influence the ...
. However, the same people are left disappointed when Open Europe produces figures and arguments advocating against Greece being forced out of the euro, or when it defends the freedom of movement for European workers which is controversial to many in Britain." In 2012 ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' live blog described Open Europe as "indispensable", while in the same year Polish daily ''
Rzeczpospolita () is the official name of Poland and a traditional name for some of its predecessor states. It is a compound of "thing, matter" and "common", a calque of Latin ''rés pública'' ( "thing" + "public, common"), i.e. ''republic'', in Engli ...
'' described Open Europe as "an influential liberal think-tank". In a 2010 article headlined ''Spoon feeding lazy journalists'', ''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...
'' characterised Open Europe in these words:


See also

*
List of think tanks in the United Kingdom This is a list of think tanks in the United Kingdom. A–I * Adam Smith Institute * Africa Research Institute * Bow Group * Boyd Group * Brand EU * Bright Blue * British American Security Information Council * British Future * Bruges Group * ...


References


External links


Open Europe Website
{{Authority control Euroscepticism in the United Kingdom International liberal organizations Political and economic think tanks based in the United Kingdom 2005 establishments in the United Kingdom Think tanks established in 2005 Think tanks based in Belgium