Following the decisive victory for the right in its parliamentary elections, Italy will shortly have a new government. The Prime Minister will almost certainly be Giorgia Meloni of Fratelli d’Italia. In a new analysis Giovanni Capoccia of the University of Oxford explains what all this might mean for Italy and for the EU. (2022:17epa)

Faced with millions of refugees fleeing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU moved quickly and with remarkable unity. In this essay SIEPS researchers Bernd Parusel and Valeriia Varfolomieieva suggest some lessons that the handling of the situation might hold for the future of EU asylum policy. (2022:16epa)

In 1997 the Court of Justice ruled that the Swedish retail monopoly on alcohol was consistent with EU law. Would it do so again today? In this report Dr Graham Butler (University of Aarhus) notes how Swedish policy and EU law have changed since that decision. He finds that, today, the monopoly’s compatibility with EU law is questionable. (2022:3)

This autumn the European Commission will present a draft of a new EU Global Health Strategy. This is an opportunity for the EU to deepen, broaden and better operationalize its approach in line with Agenda 2030, argues Louise Bengtsson, Senior Researcher at SIEPS. (2022:15epa)

Swedish voters are still reluctant to join the euro. For this situation to change, the EU’s economic and monetary union (EMU) must be able to ensure economic prosperity, writes Karolina Ekholm, Professor in International Economics at Stockholm University. (2022:14epa)

The EU’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) is far from perfect. But it is a unique achievement, and it has weathered all the economic and political storms of its existence so far. It will in all likelihood continue to do so, writes Charles Wyplosz, economist and Emeritus Professor at the Graduate Institute, Geneva, as he assesses proposals to safeguard the future of the euro, and makes some of his own. (2022:13epa)

Long criticized as deficient, the EU’s democratic system now finds itself threatened – as do national systems – by populism, technocracy, and rival forms of government. The essays in this collection suggest how EU representative democracy could change in order to survive and perform effectively. Contributions by Ben Crum, Valentin Kreilinger, Christopher Lord, Sonja Puntscher Riekmann, and Göran von Sydow. (2022:2op)

From carbon tariffs to energy taxes, the EU’s climate and environment policies have consequences across the world, and Europe is dependent on the rest of the world for raw materials, investment and expertise for its green transition. The package as a whole, argues SIEPS Senior Advisor Mats Engström, is unlikely to succeed without more engagement, especially with countries in the Global South. (2022:10epa)

The EU is struggling to agree sanctions on Russian energy supplies. By applying tariffs to oil and gas imports from Russia the Union could protect its energy security during a phase-out, while preventing Russia from financing its war in Ukraine. This could be agreed by qualified majority, and would mean the EU’s trade policy was aligned with its values, interests and obligations, argues Hannes Lenk, Senior Researcher in Law at SIEPS. (May 2022)

From the sovereign debt crisis to the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU has taken a leading role in the management of crises. The essays in this anthology analyse the EU’s performance and suggest how it could improve as a ‘crisis manager’. Contributions by Christian Kreuder-Sonnen, Vivien A. Schmidt, Astrid Séville and Jonathan White. (2022:1op)