Latest blog articles

  • Officially supported export credits are instruments that governments can use to boost or support their exports, either through insurances, loans or guarantees. Most governments provide this support through Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), the first of which were founded in the 1920s (Stephens, 1999).

  • In her recent book “The Deficit Myth” star economist Stephanie Kelton tells us why economists should not worry too much about sovereign debt and deficits. But is that the same for lawyers? And are all countries truly treated equally?

  • More than ten years after the European Court of Justice ruled that the German Eigenheimzulage was in breach of European law, the EC also started questioning its successor, the Baukindergeld. ITEM had previously concluded that the Baukindergeld was in breach of European law. We now await the...

  • In its judgment of 19 September 2019, the ECJ ruled that Dutch legislation excluding frontier workers residing in the Netherlands but working as a mini-jobber in Germany from the Dutch social security system is compatible with EU law. If the Hoge Raad follows the approach taken by the ECJ, the...

  • This blog is currently only available in Dutch.

    Op 22 mei 2019 verscheen de ‘Atlas voor gemeenten 2019’. De 50 grootste gemeenten van Nederland worden jaarlijks met elkaar vergeleken. Dat kunnen verschillende beleidsterreinen zijn waar lokale, regionale en centrale overheden zich mee bezighouden...

  • This blog is only available in Dutch.

    Als je woont of werkt in een grensregio zijn daar zowel voor- als nadelen aan verbonden. Laat ik met het belangrijkste nadeel beginnen: Voor landelijke gebeurtenissen ben je een eind weg van daar waar het meest gebeurt. Dat zijn de grote Randsteden: als je pech...

  • Two prominent issues on the agenda of European equality lawyers have so far largely (although see recently CJ C-83/14 Nikolova) remained outside scrutiny of the Court of Justice of the European Union: discrimination on grounds of religion or belief and segregation of Roma. Recent developments may...

  • The senseless killings and horrific attack on a newspaper and on a shop. Of course these terrorist attacks are violations of the right to life and the freedom of expression and therefore on our democratic societies. The perpetrators wanted to instill fear and to create chaos and undo our precious...