The news has been full of talk of Brexit and the UK’s historic referendum decision to leave the European Union (EU). But how did this situation come about and what does it really mean?
What is the EU?
The EU came into being after the end of World War Two in a spirit of peace, reconciliation and cooperation. Originally it was primarily concerned with facilitating trade between the nations of Europe. Over time, however, its federated membership has expanded to include the former Communist countries of Eastern Europe. Along with an expanded membership came a broader remit for the EU which increasingly encompassed wider issues such as immigration and greater EU regulation.
What led up to the UK’s referendum decision?
The EU has brought many positives to the people of Europe including peace, increased prosperity and the free movement of people between countries. However, one price of greater economic integration is that when times get tough, the effects can be magnified throughout the union. Many economists believe that the European Central Bank failed to respond adequately to the Global Financial Crisis in 2008. This resulted in a major economic downturn in Europe: unemployment rose, banks needed bailouts and debt among some EU countries increased significantly.
In such a state of crisis many UK citizens began to feel a sense of resentment that they were bailing out less wealthy countries in the EU. In addition, those people in European countries that were hit especially hard by the market crash – often the Eastern European nations – began to migrate to the UK in search of jobs that they couldn’t find at home. Since then, tensions over the free movement of people and immigration have continued to increase in the UK.
It was in this context that the British Prime Minister David Cameron announced in 2013 a referendum on the UK’s continued membership of the EU. And it was in this context that the UK electorate narrowly voted to leave or Brexit.
What will happen now to the UK and the EU?
The short answer is that nobody really knows as this is an unprecedented situation. It is likely to take up to two years for the UK to extricate itself from the EU. Negotiations will include the future relationship the UK will have with the EU including trade, and the continued free movement of people. However, it’s fair to say that there are considerable tensions and quite how willing the EU will be to negotiate favourably with the UK on these issues remains to be seen.
Another concern for the EU is that other member states may seek their own Brexit. Some EU nations, including Spain and France, have been experiencing similar internal tensions to that of the UK. It is, therefore, imperative for the EU to try to stem any ripple effect from Brexit.
The UK’s departure from the EU is a momentous event. Quite how momentous and what the Europe of the future will look like, remains to be seen.
This article is supplied by Newsletter Ready.