June 23, 2016 has already been tentatively set as the date of the U.K. European Union membership referendum, and the results of the vote are likely to be tight. With the potential exit sparking fierce debate, we talk to Ronen Palan, a professor of international politics at City University London and expert in EU-U.K. relations, for more. He explains the facts on Brexit and what it means for the U.K.
ResearchGate: Why is the U.K. considering exiting the EU? And is it really, or are there other reasons for threatening to leave?
Ronen Palan: It is not that easy to explain the U.K.’s position. Proponents of Brexit speak mostly in symbolic language, of sovereignty—or rather, of regaining sovereignty. At the same time, they insist on continuing the preferential trade agreements with the EU that the U.K. currently enjoys. This implies that those who are pro-Brexit tend to support the “Norwegian” model of agreements with the EU. To maintain the current trading relationships, Britain will need to continue paying the EU and abiding by its rules, but will lose “sovereignty” as it will not be able to shape those rules. Proponents are also concerned with Britain’s orientation towards the EU at the expense of other interests, including the Commonwealth, the United States, and Asia—but again, it is not clear how the EU stands in the way of these other relationships.
The core reasons for Britain’s ambiguous relationship to the EU, in my view, go back to the strategic development model adopted by the Thatcher government. The Thatcher government sought to place the U.K. as the gateway to Europe, attracting foreign investment in finance and manufacturing. As such, The City is highly unregulated and serves in effect as the financial center of Europe, while former Prime Minister John Major insisted on British exception to EU labor laws.
