10

• Preliminary steps


  1. Council of Europe 1949

  2. European Coal and Steel Community 1951

  3. EEC 1957 Treaty of Rome
• Council of Europe 1949

  • Britain, Benelux, Denmark, France, Eire, Norway, Sweden
  • Foreign ministers of member states
  • Debates and recommendations (human rights issues)
• European Coal and Steel Community 1951

  Britain refused because coal and steel nationalization and suspicion of federalism
• EEC 1957 Treaty of Rome


  • France, Germany, Italy, Benelux
  • End customer duties and quotas: free competition and 'common market'
  • Remarkable trade success in 5 years
• • Highest steel production outside USA
  • Production in France +75%, Germany +90% since 1953
• Why did the UK not join?

  • Fears of loss of sovereignty
  • Special relationship with US
  • Trade links with the Commonwealth
• • 40% of UK exports: Empire+ Commonwealth
  • Population= 800 million
  • Preference for Commonwealth goods (NZ lamb and butter)
• Co-founded rival European Free Trade Association

  No federalist risk, but less effective
• Change of mind


  1. 1961 Macmillan began talks to join

  2. Weaker economic performance of UK

  3. Commonwealth countries could be 'associates', former Dominions were trading in own regions

  4. Need to avoid being sidelined if political union grew
• Attitudes


  • Conservatives increasingly favorable to Europe (especially Ted Hath)
  • Labour against: 'selling our friends and countrymen down the river...for a marginal advantage in selling washing machines in Dusseldorf' (Wilson)
  • Public opinion divided
• Non...et non!


  1. 1963 & 1967 De Gaulle vetoed entry

  2. Fear of UK rivalry

  3. Suspicion of US link

  4. Reluctance over Commonwealth (but what about French ex-colonies?)

  5. Threat to French agriculture (British farms were more efficient with cheaper produce)
• Accession


  1. 1973 Heath signed up together with Denmark and Eire

  2. De Gaulle had gone, Pompidou more amenable

  3. West Germany growing too powerful

  4. 1975 Wilson's referendum
• • 67% voted in favor
  • But only 2/3 voted
  • Less than half supported Europe
• Europhile & Eurosceptics


  • British political parties and public opinion have since been split
  • Inversion of roles: Labour generally more favorable
  • Resistance to loss of sovereignty
• Elections


  1. 1979 Direct elections introduced (previously MPs appointed: considered undemocratic)

  2. 5-year parliament

  3. 1997 British switched from FPTP to proportional representation: allowed smaller extremist groups

  4. Conservatives generally have more votes than Labour in Euro-election

  5. Conservatives often do better than Labour

  6. Nationalist parties well-represented

  7. PR transformed results

  8. UKIP - souverainiste

  9. BNP- racist party progress

  10. Massive swing to UKIP in 2014

  11. UKIP in 2014: the largest party while they want end the membership of the UK
• Thatcher's Ice Age


  • 'Buy British'
  • Common Agricultural Policy: subsidies constituted 3/4 of EC budget 1980 (wine lakes, butter mountains..)
  • Britain didn't get economic benefits like Ireland
  • Rebate debate: 'I want my money'
• Currency


  1. 1979 exchange rate mechanism

  2. Britain refused to join (Thatcher) until 1990 (too late - £ over-valued)

  3. 1992 UK withdrew

  4. (1999 Euro created for cashless transactions)

  5. (2002 Euro coins and notes introduced)
• Maastricht 1992


  • Closer economic and monetary union
  • European Parliament strengthened
  • Social Chapter on equality, labour regulations...
  • Britain argued to 'opt out' (John Major): antagonized European because of unfair advantage
• Treaty approved by narrow margin: continuing harassment from Eurosceptics
• • Paradox: at first Tories were in favor and Labour opposed... now inserted
  • Example: Social Chapter rejected by Major, but adopted by Labour in 1997
  • Since Thatcher, UK - and particularly Tories - plagued by euroscepticism, aggravated by 2004 enlargement (+10)
• Cameron and the EU

  1. 2010 election yields many eurosceptic Tories (Better Off Out group 2006)

  2. 2011 People's pledge petition gathers 100,000 signatures

  3. January 2013 - commits to renegotiation of terms then an in/out referendum on EU before 2017 (if reelected)

  4. Re-elected and did the referendum because he never think that enough people will vote against EU
• Renegotiation to referendum


  1. February 2016: Cameron negotiated a series of concessions (including restrictions on benefits paid to immigrants EU workers, and a greater commitment to free flow of capital, goods and services)

  2. This agreement would come into effect after the referendum on 23rd June...

  3. LEAVE: 51.9% / REMAIN: 48.1%
• A narrow margin
• Pro-Brexit vote


  • NI= 44%
  • Scotland= 38%
  • Wales= 52.5%
  • England= 53.4%
• Brexit demographics


  • Pro-European Remain voters are more likely to be young, better educated with a higher income, and supported left(ish) parties in 2015
  • Brexit supporters are older, generally poorer and less educated and supported right-wing parties in 2015
  • Greens: 75% Remain / UKIP: 96% Leave
  • Younger people: Remain / older people: Leave
  • Upper-class: Remain / low-class: Leave
  • 'If you want a fruit picker for a neighbor, vote Labour' Conservatives
• Lot of migrants were west-europeans and fruit pickers
• State of the Union (Newsnight Nov 2019)