Geoffrey Boycott, the famous English batsman,, part of the infamous team from England that went on the first rebel tour to South Africa in 1982, has always criticised the way “Governments of all colours have handed power to Brussels” and this statement sums up the “Leave Campaign” in 2016 or the “No campaign” in 1975. One referendum, three Prime Ministers, three general elections, countless resignations,and numerous negotiations are what have contributed to the decision of the United Kingdom to formally leave the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) on 31st of January 2020. It all started with a promise in a manifesto of a political party for their own political reasoning but rather ended with huge economic, and administrative consequences for the entire country and that is the story of Brexit.
What did Britain want to leave?
On 9th May 1950 the day after the 5th anniversary of the end of World War II, Robert Schuman, the French foreign minister proposed the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) via the Schuman declaration to prevent another war between the French & Germans and also to turn the French foreign policy away from Gaullism (A French political ideology based on the principles of Charles De Gaulle, the father of the 5th French Republic). The declaration came into force with the Treaty of Paris in 1951 signed by the countries of the “Inner Six'' (West Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy) aimed at creating a single market for Coal and Steel resources. Later the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC) and European Economic Community (EEC) were formed in 1957. At the same time, another trade bloc called the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was formed by the countries of the “Outer Seven'' (United Kingdom, Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark, Portugal, Sweden, and Austria). In 1973 the UK joined the EEC finally after repeated vetoes of the UK’s applications into the EEC by the then-French president, Charles De Gaulle. The European Communities (EC) comprising ECSC, EAEC, and EEC aimed at creating a European single market with special emphasis on the principle of four freedoms which are the free movement of goods, capital, and people and the freedom to establish & provide services. But the Yom Kippur War in 1973 shortened the euphoria about the UK joining the EC, as an oil embargo by the Middle Eastern countries forced a “Three day working week” and eventually a general election, in which the Labour party promised a referendum on their membership in the organisation.
The signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1951
1975 European Communities (EC) membership referendum
The Labour party came to power in October 1974 and as promised, a referendum was proposed in 1975. Interestingly the official party stance of the Conservatives in 1975 was to stay in the EC, a monumental ideological shift compared to the 2016 referendum. On the other hand, the Labour Party had no official stance. With an overwhelming 2/3rd majority, the people of the UK decided to continue with their EC membership. Unusual for a referendum, according to the Referendum Act 1975 the option to maintain the status quo was “YES”.
Conservatives campaign to “ Stay In Europe” for the 1975 referendum
Maastricht Treaty, Lisbon Treaty
After the induction of the UK into the EC, many other countries started joining in. The signing of the Schengen Agreement (Creation of open borders between member states), the first-ever direct European Parliament elections along the Single European Act aimed to create a single market for the entire European community have all strengthened the claims and promises of economic prosperity, social security, luring many other countries to join in. In 1992 the Maastricht treaty was signed which laid the foundation pillars for the European Union (EU) with provisions for shared citizenship and currency along with little emphasis on a common foreign policy. Later in 2007, the Treaty of Lisbon was signed which became the constitutional basis of the EU amending both the 1992,1957 treaties. The aim was to enhance the efficiency of the organisation and provide it with democratic legitimacy for which a bicameral legislature was introduced and a charter of fundamental rights was made legally binding. Though signatories of both the Maastricht and Lisbon treaties, the UK was never fully integrated into the EU as they had the most number of opt-outs for any country at 4. The UK opted out of the Schengen agreement, the Economic and Monetary Union for a common euro currency, the Charter of Fundamental Rights and others.
Signing of the Lisbon Treaty
Why did Britain want to leave?
Levels of support for the EU had always been lower in the UK compared to any other country and the reason being British are least likely to feel any European identity. The political class of London has for long felt there was no need for British involvement in European affairs and stayed as far as possible. The stance of the USA during the Suez Crisis of 1956 mandated the UK to find allies in the European subcontinent and the formation of EFTA eventually joining the EEC. Interestingly, the Labour Party was more Eurosceptic in both the 1970s and 80s. But it didn’t take the conservatives along with Margaret Thatcher, a supporter of the Single European Act much longer to join the apprehensions of Eurosceptics. By 1988, Thatcher warned against a potential super-state exercising dominance from Brussels. She also warned against the plan of a single currency which the UK tried to join after her ouster but had to back out at the final moment because of the disastrous “Black Wednesday” which crashed the pound sterling.
Rise of Euroscepticism in the UK
After the signing of the Maastricht treaty in 1992, the fears of Eurosceptics rose to an all-time high leading to the formation of an entirely new political class in the UK, based on the country’s continued membership in the EU. One such party was the Referendum party whose sole objective was for a referendum on the UK's membership in the EU. Another major political party with national identity at the core of its politics was the UK Independence Party (UKIP). UKIP always positioned itself as a party that stood for national sovereignty, which they felt was taken away from them by Brussels. UKIP had been largely successful with its Eurosceptic ideology and became the first party to poll the most no.of votes in a pan-UK election other than Labour, and the Conservatives since 1906. UKIP won the most number of seats in the 2014 European Parliamentary Election.
2015 UK General Election
With the continued increase of EU membership in the list of voters priorities and Immigration being a cause of great concern for many voters, the remaining Maastricht rebels and backbenchers of the Tory party forced PM David Cameron to include a YES/NO referendum on Britain's membership in the EU as part of the party manifesto. The logic behind it was simple, to make sure that the ever-rising UKIP doesn’t eat into the Conservative vote in a closely contested general election which would go on to the wire. Just like that, another manifesto promise just as the one by Labour in 1974, forced the UK into their second referendum on the same question of the total three referendums they had, with the other being on replacing the “First past the post” with an “Alternative Vote Method” just 4 years ago in 2011.
2016 Brexit Referendum
After the conservatives did come to power in 2015, a referendum as promised was inevitable. Though a private members bill was introduced by a Tory in 2013, the official legislation through which the referendum was conducted has passed the Parliament and given royal assent only in 2015. While the Conservative Party had no official position on the referendum, many of the party members led by Boris Johnson openly supported the leave campaign. Whereas, the cabinet led by the PM supported staying in the EU. The Labour Party also decided to support the “Stay In” campaign.
As planned, the referendum did take place on 23rd June 2016 and the people of the UK with a razor-thin margin decided to leave the EU. While urban centres & upper class voted to remain, it was the working class that heavily voted to leave. The fishing community voted nearly unanimously to leave, considering the restrictions the community faced staying in the EU. While within the UK, England and Wales voted to leave, on the other hand, Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain leading to calls for a referendum on their own independence.
Boris Johnson campaigns to Leave in 2016
How did Britain leave?
Though the decision to leave was made, it was not until the 31st of January 2020 that the decision was implemented. It was mainly to decide the future course of action between the UK and all other nations along with settling financial, security and many other issues with the EU itself. Staying in the Eurozone, meant the UK was integrated into its financial, banking, and justice systems completely making it tough to come out unless concrete post-exit systems were in place and that is why a “Brexit Deal” was very important for an already punctured UK’s economy. At one point, the UK was staring at a “ No Brexit Deal” which was avoided by extending the last date to leave the EU. While the UK did achieve a deal on its own terms, in the end it was a roller-coaster ride for its political system with previous deals getting rejected in the Parliament, PM’s resignation, and snap general elections being called twice.
UK Political Crisis post-Brexit
The immediate fallout of the referendum was felt in the power circles of London with PM David Cameron resigning followed by a crisis in the currency market, banking sector and various other financial institutions. Theresa May took over the reins from Cameron and called for a snap general election to increase her party's strength in the Parliament to potentially improve bargaining power at the negotiations table for a deal. But to her disbelief, Conservatives though came out as the single largest party that couldn't form a government on its own. This situation put May under immense pressure with any deal not being able to pass the Parliament and the UK staring at a no-deal exit. Eventually, even Theresa May had to resign paving the way for the Leave campaign's poster boy, Boris Johnson. Johnson called for another election and this time, Conservatives did come out with a bigger mandate and finally, a deal was signed by the end of December 2019.
And with that, though the UK was officially out of the EU, a few commitments had to be fulfilled and the partnership between the two parties had to go on for a few more years.
Boris Johnson campaigns in the 2019 General Election
Source:https://news.sky.com/story/boris-johnson-promises-decade-of-prosperity-in-new-years-message-11898830
Aftermath of Brexit
Though there have been many calls for another referendum, this time on "Brexin" none of them have been taken seriously by either the Conservatives or the Labour Party. Nonetheless, support for Brexit post the referendum has been declining for various reasons especially considering how the export sector has been affected. Even most of the promises by the Leave campaigners have also not been delivered. In the end, only one thing matters and that is, "Brexit" is a reality which can't be changed.
Anti-Brexit protests in 2017 after the referendum
Article by:
Preetham Saran,
PES MUN Society, RR Campus.
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