The impact of the EU on British politics Flashcards
How did the impact of EU policy on the UK vary?
From sector to sector according to the extent of EU competences
How did the UK play a role in terms of EU laws?
Government departments and local authorities implemented them and the courts enforced them
What policy areas did the EU have a significant impact on?
Trade, agriculture, business and the environment
Which policy areas did the EU have a limited impact on?
Health and defence
What did EU membership contribute to the development of?
Multilevel governance in the UK
Define multilevel governance
A system of decision making in which subnational, national and supranational organisations all have decision making competences
Explain the idea of national sovereignty
Final decision making authority is located within the nation state, with national government determining the law within its own territory
What is the difference between legal and political sovereignty?
Legal sovereignty is theoretical, whereas political sovereignty is sovereignty in practise
How do Eurosceptics focus on legal sovereignty?
They claimed that EU membership meant a loss of sovereignty because EU law had primacy over UK law
What did soft Eurosceptics seek?
Opt outs from some EU policies and the repatriation of some competences
What is repatriation?
The return of competences to national government
What did hard Eurosceptics seek?
Complete withdrawal or a fundamental renegotiation of membership sufficient enough to restore sovereignty
Pro-Europeans argued that the UK enjoyed pooled sovereignty as part of the EU. What does this mean?
That the UK shared its sovereignty with other member states in order to increase its influence and capacity to act
Define parliamentary sovereignty
Where ultimate authority resides with parliament as the supreme law making body
List the three elements of parliamentary sovereignty
- Legislation made by parliament cannot be overturned by any higher authority
- Parliament can legislate on any matter of its choosing
- No parliament can bind its successors
How did EU membership challenge parliamentary sovereignty?
Because EU law had primacy over UK law
Give an example of EU membership challenging parliamentary sovereignty
When the 1988 Merchant Shipping Act had to be overturned because it was incompatible with EU law
Why did parliament remain sovereign despite EU membership?
It retained ultimate legislative authority and could repeal the European Communities Act
How has parliamentary sovereignty been challenged by the increased use of referendums?
They have shifted the focus towards popular sovereignty
Define popular sovereignty
The idea that the authority of the state is derived from the consent of the people
What did the 2011 EU Act do?
Introduced a referendum lock under which any future treaty transferring powers from the EU to the UK must be put to a biding UK referendum
What three things, aside from the higher status of EU law, also acted as a threat to national sovereignty?
- The extension of EU competences
- QMV
- The powers of EU supranational institutions
Make the case that departure from the EU has restored British sovereignty
- Parliamentary sovereignty has been restored as it is no longer subject to EU law
- Policy competences have been returned to the UK and will be decided by UK rather than EU institutions
- Voters will have a greater opportunity to hold the government to account for policy decisions in areas where the EU previously had competence
Make the case that departure from the EU has restored British sovereignty
- Parliamentary sovereignty has been restored as it is no longer subject to EU law
- Policy competences have been returned to the UK and will be decided by UK rather than EU institutions
- Voters will have a greater opportunity to hold the government to account for policy decisions in areas where the EU previously had competence
Make the case that Brexit has not restored British sovereignty
- Globalisation means that no state can act independently on issues like the environment, migration and economic policy
- The UK chose to pool sovereignty within the EU to achieve policy goals that it may not be able to achieve outside of the EU
- The UK may not have the same influence on European and international affairs than it would have done as a member state
- Devolved institutions want a greater say on EU competences being given back to the UK
Give an example of a policy objective the UK can no longer achieve as easily due to Brexit
The removal of trade barriers
Define globalisation
The process by which states and people become more interdependent and interconnected
How did Professor Stephen George describe the UK within the EU in 1990?
He said they were an awkward partner
Why did George describe the UK as an awkward partner?
It was less enthusiastic about integration than other member states and was a semi-detached member of the EU
List some of the elements of British awkwardness within the EU
- Distinctive history and culture
- Late entry
- Wariness of further integration
- EU policy exemptions
- Limited influence in EU negotiations
- Limited consensus between and within political parties
- Popular Euroscepticism
Explain the idea of a distinctive history and culture
Differs from that of continental Europe. Has had a global outlook and close relationship with the USA and has not experienced that major political upheavals seen within other European states
Explain the idea of late entry
French president de Gaulle vetoed UK membership applications in 1961 and 1967, meaning membership only occurred in 1973. By this time, the UK found that problematic policies, like CAP, were already in place
Explain the idea of weariness of further integration
Governments tended to be unenthusiastic or actively hostile to further integration. They supported intergovernmental cooperation over extensive supranational authority and a single market rather than the EMU
Explain the idea of EU policy exemptions
The UK negotiated a series of special arrangements and opt outs that meant it did not participate in some EU policies
Explain the idea of limited impact on EU negotiations
The UK was often in a minority of states opposed to change and did not develop durable alliance to rival the Franco-German partnership. Only really managed to be influential in the single market and defence
List three exemptions from EU policy enjoyed by the UK
- Non participation in the 2012 fiscal compact treaty
- An opt out from the social chapter of the Maastricht Treaty
- An opt out from the EMU
The UK was a net contributor to the EU budget. What does this mean?
It paid in more than it received back
Who was the only member state to pay more into the EU budget?
Germany
What proportion of government expenditure went to the EU in 2019?
1%
Why does the EU still receive some money off the UK?
Because it pays to participate in some EU programmes
Why was CAP a problem for the UK?
Because it already has a small and efficient agricultural sector, so it was viewed as wasteful and bureaucratic
Explain the idea of limited consensus within and between political parties
No consensus about the benefits of EU membership amongst the political elite as could be seen in other member states. The two main parties switched their positions on Europe - with the conservatives initially supporting and labour initially rejecting, but this had swapped over by the time the 2016 referendum came around. Euroscepticism became a mainstream political issue over time. Parties were divided over integration
Explain the idea of popular Euroscepticism
Levels of support for EU membership and further integration were lower in the UK than in any other member state. UK citizens were also less likely to feel European. Newspapers like The Sun and Daily Mail took up populist Eurosceptic positions. UKIP tapped into and fuelled Euroscepticism within the electorate. Its extent was made apparent in the 2016 referendum
Describe the EU’s role in social policy
It does not have extensive competences in social policy and therefore limits itself to correcting market failures by promoting employment and improving workers’ rights
How has the UK been hesitant towards the EU having a greater role in social policy?
Major got an opt out of the Maastricht treaty social chapter and Blair was resistant to a greater EU role in social policy, even after scrapping Major’s opt out
What has been the primary cause of disagreements over social policy?
The UK favours the free market model of capitalism and not the EU model of regulation, strong welfare states and bargaining between TUs and employers
What did Cameron promise in 2013?
An in/out referendum on EU membership if the conservatives won the 2015 GE. However, he also promised to renegotiate relations with the EU before the referendum
What were the driving factors behind Cameron’s decision to call the referendum?
- Tensions over the EU-UK relationship
- The conservatives were divided, with Eurosceptic backbenchers repeatedly rebelling
- He hoped that the decision to hold it would reverse the flow of voters from the conservatives to UKIP
What was the turnout for the Brexit referendum?
72% - the highest UK wide figure since the 1992 GE
What was the split in the Brexit vote?
52% - 48%
Who was the remain campaign supported by?
- Most MPs
- Senior figures from business
- The BoE
- The military
- US president Barack Obama
- However, this did not shift public opinion significantly
What did the Remain Campaign focus on?
The economic case for EU membership, regarding Brexit as economically costly
What was the main flaw of the Remain campaign focusing on economics?
There stark warnings were dubbed ‘project fear’ - damaging their credibility. Most leave voters doubted that Brexit would make them worse off personally and were more concerned with sovereignty and immigration
List the economic perks of EU membership
- UK’s largest trading partner is the EU, accounting for 43% of exports and 53% of imports in 2019
- 3.5 million jobs are linked to trade in Europe
- The single market made the UK more attractive to foreign investors
- Most economists believe that UK economic growth will now be lower than if it had remained a member state - GDP 4% lower
- ## UK may not have the same clout in trade negotiations as the EU
List the economic costs of EU membership
- There was an overall trade deficit of £79 billion pounds with the EU in 2019
- EU regulation costed an estimated £33 billion annually
- The UK was a net contributor to the EU budget
- Now free to negotiate bilateral trade deals
- Trade with non-EU countries has been growing
- By 2021, the UK had agreed new trade deals with Japan and Australia
What did Cameron’s pre-referendum renegotiation with the EU fail to do?
Convince enough conservative MPs or voters that real change had been secured
What did the Leave campaign focus on?
Had a clear message of taking back control, claiming that Brexit would reduce immigration
What did critics accuse the Leave campaign of?
Xenophobia
Who did the Leave campaign enjoy support off?
The majority of the tabloid press
How did the referendum create new divides within British politics?
- England and Wales votes to leave, but Scotland, London and NI voted to remain
- Young people wanted to remain, while older people wanted to leave
- Middle class voters supported remain, while working class voters wanted to leave
- Those with higher qualifications wanted to remain, while those with lesser qualifications wanted to leave
- Cosmopolitans wanted to remain and non-cosmopolitans wanted to leave
Who was more likely to want to leave?
Those who felt disadvantaged and left behind. This explains why they were so easily swept up by a populist campaign telling them what they wanted to hear
Explain why cosmopolitans wanted to remain and non-cosmopolitans wanted to leave
Cosmopolitans have socially liberal attitudes and are pro-immigration and positive about social and cultural change. They are university educated, have professional occupations and are younger. Non-cosmopolitans have socially conservative attitudes, are negative about immigration, distrust the political system and are suspicious of social and cultural change. They have lower levels of education, are in manual occupations, are older and tend to live in towns that are in economic decline
What did May mean when she said that there would be no soft Brexit?
The UK would leave the single market and customs union, end the free movement of people and remove the jurisdiction of the CJEU over UK law
List the key issues in the first stage of the Brexit negotiations
- The rights of EU citizens residing in the UK
- A financial settlement
- Protecting the GFA by ensuring no hard border
What did May’s 2018 Withdrawal Agreement include?
- A NI protocol
- A financial settlement with the EU
- Provisions on citizens’ rights
- Established a transition period in which EU laws would apply to the UK despite its having left the EU
What happened to May’s 2018 Withdrawal Agreement?
It was defeated three times in the commons and she was forced to resign
How did Bojo get Brexit done?
Proposed a revised withdrawal agreement in 2019 with a revised NI protocol and a harder Brexit, with the UK diverging from EU regulations. It was approved by parliament after the 2019 GE and the UK then left the EU on the 31 Jan 2021 and the transition period ended on the 31 Dec 2021
When was the EU-UK Trade Cooperation Agreement agreed?
Christmas Eve 2020
List the main features of the EU-UK Trade Cooperation Agreement
- No tariffs or quotas on goods exchanged between the EU and UK, subject to rules of origin. So if a good was made in the UK with lots of non-UK materials, it may not be exported to the EU tariff free
- Non-tariff barriers are created
- Tariffs can be imposed if either side feel that level playing field provisions have been breached
- Annual negotiations on fishing quotas
- Still cooperation on law and security but just less robust
- The UK participates in and contributes to some EU programmes but will no longer participate in others
- A partnership council is created
When will the EU-UK trade agreement be reviewed?
2025
What has been the issue with the government using Brexit to take back centralised control?
It caused tensions between the branches and put strain on the devolution settlement
How did Brexit actually create more debate over sovereignty?
- Supporters of popular sovereignty said that parliament should not get in the way of Brexit, while supporters of parliamentary sovereignty said the referendum was not binding and Brexit required parliamentary consent
- Brexit restored parliament’s status as the supreme legislative authority but there are still practical limitations on parliamentary sovereignty
What is a hard Brexit?
One where the UK leaves the single market and customs union, ends free movement of people, is no longer subject to EU law and does not contribute to the EU budget
What would have been the hardest form of Brexit?
A no deal Brexit
What would have happened under a no deal Brexit?
The UK and EU would have imposed tariffs upon one another
What a soft Brexit have been?
Membership of the single market in return for some movement of people, like Norway
Why did Conservatives reject a Swiss style deal?
Too complicated
Why did the conservatives reject a Norway deal?
Because it would mean the UK was bound by EU law but unable to influence it
What did the Brexit process expose?
The ambiguities of the UK’s uncodified constitution
How were prerogative powers curbed by the Supreme Court during the Brexit process?
- Ruled that the government couldn’t use its prerogative powers to trigger article 50 and needed parliamentary consent
- Ruled that Johnson advising the Queen to prorogue parliament at a vital stage during the Brexit negotiations was unlawful
How has Brexit afforded the Supreme Court greater independence?
It is no longer bound by CJEU decisions but may take them into account and no longer required to refer to EU law
How did parliament dominate the executive during the first half of the Brexit process?
- Rejected May’s Withdrawal Agreement three times
- Seized control of the parliamentary timetable to pass legislation preventing a no deal Brexit against the government’s wishes
- 20 ministers resigned over Brexit before May herself resigned
Why were parliament able to dominate during the first half of the Brexit process?
Minority government and cabinet divisions allowed it to be more proactive
How did the balance of power between executive and legislature change during the second half of the Brexit process?
- Johnson won an 80 seat majority in 2019
- Secondary legislation was used to implement Brexit and this cannot be effectively scrutinised by parliament
What complicated the return of competences from the EU and to the UK?
Because some of them, like agriculture, were devolved matters
How did the return of competences cause Westminster to break the devolution contract?
Under the Sewel Convention, Westminster will not usually legislate on devolved matters unless it has the consent of the devolved legislatures. However, seeking to centralise power, protect the UK internal market and restrict the ability of the devolved institutions to change policy, the UK government enacted core Brexit legislation despite the devolved legislatures refusing consent
How were the conservatives divided during the Brexit process?
Remain supporting and leave supporting conservatives both rebelled against May’s withdrawal agreement
How were Labour divided during the Brexit process?
Labour remainers wanted the party leadership to commit to a second referendum whereas other MPs representing constituencies that had voted for Brexit opted for the soft Brexit option
How were conservative divisions over Brexit healed?
It became more of a clearly pro-Brexit party following the 2019 GE
What happened to UKIP following Brexit?
It collapsed after having achieved its core objective
How did Brexit impact voting behaviour in the 2017 and 2019 GEs?
Brexit identities were stronger than party identities and most voters supported a party whose Brexit position aligned with their own; most conservative voters had voted leave and most labour voters had voted remain
