Ian Manners
Professor
Where Does The Brexit Debate Stand In The United Kingdom Right Now? : Presentation to the European Affairs Committee of the Danish Parliament, 14th October 2016
Author
Summary, in English
On the 11th October 2016 the opposition Labour Party presented the ruling Conservative UK government with a list of 170 questions – one for each day before Theresa May’s self-imposed deadline to start the process of leaving the EU. A more realistic list of questions in the UK’s ‘Brexit’ debate right now would consist of 17 000 questions – the four decade-old UK-EU relationship raises so many questions that it would take that many days (46 years) to address them.
This briefing will focus on three factors in the UK right now – referendum context, UK gov-ernment, and Brexit debate – with a specific focus on just seven questions in the Brexit debate: legal, political, social, economic, conflict, and environmental questions.
The briefing argues that the UK referendum has unsettled Britain for a generation to come. The unconvincing referendum context, the UK government omnishambles, and the unanswerable questions of the divisive Brexit debates all create a very uncertain future which further threatens the cohesion of the UK.
Prior to 2016 the question of ‘Europe’ – the UK’s membership of the EU - was long con-sidered a ‘second order’ issue of no real political interest to voters and politicians alike. The divisive campaign, referendum, and resulting political chaos have created a new, first-order rupture at the heart of British society and politics.
This briefing will focus on three factors in the UK right now – referendum context, UK gov-ernment, and Brexit debate – with a specific focus on just seven questions in the Brexit debate: legal, political, social, economic, conflict, and environmental questions.
The briefing argues that the UK referendum has unsettled Britain for a generation to come. The unconvincing referendum context, the UK government omnishambles, and the unanswerable questions of the divisive Brexit debates all create a very uncertain future which further threatens the cohesion of the UK.
Prior to 2016 the question of ‘Europe’ – the UK’s membership of the EU - was long con-sidered a ‘second order’ issue of no real political interest to voters and politicians alike. The divisive campaign, referendum, and resulting political chaos have created a new, first-order rupture at the heart of British society and politics.
Publishing year
2016-10-14
Language
English
Full text
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Document type
Report
Publisher
University of Copenhagen
Topic
- Political Science
Keywords
- Brexit
- United Kingdom
- European Union
- European Affairs Committee
- Danish Parliament
Status
Published