Britain And The European Union

This engaging and concise new edition offers the student and general reader a compact, readable treatment of British membership of the European Union (EU) from 1973 up until the present day and Brexit, with detailed analysis of the period 1945-1972 accounting for Britain's absence from the formation of the EU. It provides a highly distilled and accessible analysis and overview of some of the parameters and recurring features of Britain’s membership of the European Union, touching on all the major facets of membership at this critical time in Britain’s relationship with Europe. Key features of the new edition: examines the constant and changing character of British membership of the EU; discusses the problematical and often paradoxical features of EU membership; familiarises the reader with both academic and public debates about the subject; offers thematic treatment of all aspects of policy and attitudes towards the EU; significantly restructured and updated to include the origins of the decision to hold a referendum on UK membership of the EU, the campaign, explanations for its outcome, and the course, substance and implications of the UK-EU Brexit negotiations. This book will be of key interest to scholars, students and the generally interested reader in the areas of European Politics/Studies, British Politics, EU Politics/Studies, Area Studies and International Relations.

An authoritative, up-to-date and comprehensive analysis and assessment of the impact of the EU on Britain and of Britain's contribution to the evolution of the EU. The book examines the key dimensions of this relationship, including policy and institutional developments, the effects on government and party politics, and the rise of Euroscepticism. Britain's relationship with the EU has always been riddled with doubt, scepticism and awkwardness. This much-needed new book examines why, how and with what effect the EU has become such a contentious issue in UK politics. It places the debate in historical context by starting with an overview of debates about membership in the 1950s and 1960s and then goes on to examine the impact of Britain's membership since 1973 across core policy areas, including economic and monetary union, agriculture, and foreign and security policy.Andrew Geddes outlines major changes in the scope of the European project and assesses how central, devolved and local governments have responded to the EU. The book also assesses the EU's impact on domestic policies, assessing debates within and between the main parties and charting the rise of Euroscepticism as a key trend in contemporary British politics. Engagingly written, this text provides a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis both of the EU's impact on Britain and of Britain's contribution to the EU.