Dick Roche
Russian invasion has not shifted opinion: Ireland will remain neutral
While the Russian invasion of Ukraine has shifted moods in other parts of the EU, Ireland’s attachment to the policy of neutrality makes it unlikely that it will seek to join NATO in the future, writes Dick Roche.
Is it better to breach EU law than run the risk of incurring US ire?
The Bank Melli Iran v Telekom Deutschland case is significant, because it highlights the intrusive impact of US extraterritorial sanctions and spotlights the weaknesses in the EU response, writes Dick Roche.
Time for Europe to stand on its own two feet
The way the US recently applied the Magnitsky Act in Bulgaria may have been beneficial for the country struggling with its mafia, but was a humiliation vis-a-vis the EU, Dick Roche writes.
Macron’s vision of European sovereignty
On 9 December, President Emmanuel Macron launched the French EU Presidency programme at an event in the Élysée Palace. Dick Roche takes a closer look at what is in store over the next six months.
David Frost leaves: Christmas comes early in Brussels
What was behind the resignation of David Frost as UK “Brexit Minister”, and would it be enough to halt the declining UK-EU relations? Dick Roche shares his thoughts. Dick Roche is a former Irish Minister for European Affairs and former...
Extraterritorial legal outreach: Why should the US call the shots?
A US law aimed at ending corrupt practices by US corporations has morphed into an economic and political weapon and a virtual goldmine in terms of the resources US agencies have extracted from non-US companies, writes Dick Roche.
The perturbing silence surrounding the case of Julian Assange
The case for the extradition of Julian Assange raises questions about the freedom of the press, about the extraterritorial creep of US law and about Europe’s readiness - or lack off - to protect media freedom, writes Dick Roche.
The global tax marathon: Winners and losers
Aspects of the global tax reform agreement which have largely gone unnoticed are likely to come in for closer scrutiny in national parliaments of EU countries and in the European Parliament where some pushback can be expected, writes Dick Roche.
How the US got the upper hand in the OECD tax reform proposals
One of the more intriguing aspects of the negotiations on the OECD proposals to reform international corporate tax rules, which come up for decision this month, is the role played by the Biden administration, writes Dick Roche.
Can President Biden deliver on global tax reform?
On global tax reform, the key question is whether US President Joe Biden will be able to persuade Congress to support the changes needed to implement a global plan to tax multinationals more fairly, writes Dick Roche.
Trouble for Facebook and major challenge for Europe
The 14 May rejection by the Irish High Court of an appeal by Facebook against the proposals by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner (IDPC) spells trouble for Facebook and poses real challenges for the EU, writes Dick Roche.
Long odds on a successful conference
There is a parallel between the position in which the European Union is today and that in which Ireland found itself in 2001 following the rejection of the Nice Treaty in a referendum, writes Dick Roche, commenting on the Conference on the Future of Europe.
EU-US in collision course on privacy
For seven decades the United States and Europe have been moving in different directions on the right to privacy, and these days a major clash on the issue is now very much in prospect, writes Dick Roche.
The challenge of protecting European privacy from Uncle Sam’s snoopers
The findings of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) in the two cases arising from complaints against Facebook by Austrian privacy campaigner Max Schrems highlight the fundamentally opposed approaches towards data and personal privacy in the EU and the US, writes Dick Roche.
Time for Boris to stop ‘passing the buck’
Bluster, bluff and a freewheeling approach to facts have been the hallmark of the attitude of Boris Johnson to the problems Brexit posed for Northern Ireland, writes Dick Roche.
Commission right to call London’s bluff
The UK Government has been shamelessly using the Commission’s gaffe about Article 16 of the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol in its attempts to avoid the blame for post-Brexit problems and to lever additional concessions from Brussels, writes Dick Roche.
A disunited kingdom
The EU-made "crisis" with the Northern Ireland Protocol is an opportunity for Boris Johnson to distract domestic audience from the threat that his Brexit spells for the unity of the United Kingdom, writes Dick Roche.
Four narrow pathways for Trump
As it happened to Hillary Clinton in 2016 and to Al Gore in 2000, Joe Biden could win millions of votes more than his opponent and still not take the White House, writes Dick Roche.
Fear and loathing vs raw energy: Can Trump hold on?
Is the US election a done deal? Not yet, says Dick Roche, and explains why it is too early to consider that Donald Trump will necessarily lose.
A time bomb at the heart of the US presidential elections
Beware of US elections, which may end up with the world’s most powerful nation bogged down in a constitutional crisis, writes Dick Roche. Dick Roche is a former European Affairs minister of Ireland. On 3 November US voters will elect...
Vote by mail? Trouble ahead for US elections
Advocates of a vote-by-mail in the US presidential election have argued that it is the only safe way to conduct elections during the COVID pandemic. Opponents argue that moving to vote-by-mail elections opens the floodgates to fraud. Dick Roche looked...
Elections in a time of crisis: Is postal voting the answer?
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the challenge of holding elections in a time of crisis. Only the European Parliament has the expertise to advise if voting by mail would be a good idea, writes Dick Roche.
Avoiding the world another terrible contamination
In the light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU should introduce a range measures including a common human health protection policy aimed at reducing the risk of future epidemics arising from poor sanitary or phytosanitary conditions that would have to be met by countries exporting product to the EU, writes Dick Roche.