An instance where the will of the people is challenging the sovereignty of the Parliament
Given this conflict between the preference of working politicians (across parties) and the people's will, implementing Brexit is a massive challenge
While part of the problem is that politicians are in conflict with the verdict, the larger issue is that of complications arising from "Path dependence"
Where Britain has little power to negotiate a good exit deal with a club it wishes to leave!
But this is a good occasion to reflect on Britain and the Continent
1. Is Britain a part of Europe? Or is it not? What makes it distinct from Europe?
2. What prompted European integration in the first place?
4. Why wasn't there a major groundswell opposition to British entry into the European community in the early 70s?
6. What triggered the popular wave in Britain against Europe in the present decade?
Questions that require us to dig deep into the past
At that point, Britain was viewed widely as the edge of the "known world"
But despite resistance from the native warlike Brits (who were of Celtic stock), Britain eventually fell to Rome some 100 years later (between 40 and 80 CE) during the reigns of emperors Claudius and Vespasian
Its high culture was that of Rome. It was very much part of Europe
The influence of Christianity largely stemmed from Europe. An example being St Augustine of Canterbury, an Italian who succeeded in converting King Ethelbert of Kent
Not in Old English
So the country's elite saw themselves not in terms of isolation, but as receivers of a high culture that was largely European
But they remained thoroughly Norman and French in their culture.
Not English
In fact the first Norman king to speak English was Henry IV (1367 to 1413), a good 200+ years after the Norman conquest of the land
The orientation of the ruling elite was also towards the Continent. As evidenced by the 100 years war with France (from 1337 to 1453)
A war that eventually settled in favor of France. Post which British claims on France were dropped
With the rise of the Tudor dynasty, England emerged as a very distinct nation, defined by its exceptionalism
And the exceptionalism soon extended to religion. Where Henry VIII broke away from the Catholic Church (partly driven by personal reasons) turning the Anglican Church independent of Rome
The maritime supremacy was declared by the decisive victory of the English fleets over Spanish Armada (which had hoped to invade England)
As the 18th century progressed, British interests in Asia grew, where it vied hard with France and Netherlands for greater influence and leverage in the Indian subcontinent
A period of 3 centuries, when it saw itself as mostly distinct from Europe
With an orientation towards the sea and distant lands as opposed to the Continent
It was also a period of British confidence, when Great Britain was a "leader" showing the way to Europe in technology, culture, science, as opposed to the "follower" role it had played from 0 to 1500 CE
The century began well for Britain, but it faced a challenge now
From Germany
Germany was the new kid on the block after the 1871 unification
Challenging Britain in colonial ambitions and in economic might
When it was handed a defeat by Britain and its allies (including France and United States)
Yet again, Britain managed to hold its own, and defeat Germany with Allied support
Not just on Britain but on the Continent
The second world war triggered a process of decolonization, and Britain ceased to be an empire by the 1960s
Nationalism had triggered the rise of Nazis and Fascists
And it had cost 60MM lives - the total casualties in WW2
But this weariness with nationalism was not quite shared by Britain
So this marks the first major schism in the attitude towards Europe in Britain vs Continent
Britain retained its imperial pride and its patriotism, notwithstanding the loss of Empire
A declaration conceived by a Franco-German diplomat, Robert Schuman, which sought to place French and German production of coal and steel under one common High Authority
The fear that German industry might propel German re-armament and a renewed conflict with France
Military and diplomatic treaties are insufficient to ensure world peace
What's needed is a form of economic union where the European community consciously keeps German ambitions in check
"The coming together of the nations of Europe requires the elimination of the age-old opposition of France and Germany. Any action taken must in the first place concern these two countries"
So we needed a federation of Europe to check Franco-German antagonism
Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany
Britain was not a part of it. Nor was there a clamor from Europe seeking Britain to be part of it
Though the public was indifferent to the idea
The "Community" held the promise of a common market which was enticing
Eventually Britain did join in 1973, notwithstanding widespread opposition to it within Britain
The elites on one hand sort of gravitated towards Europe, given the urge not to be left out of this "federation" which could gang up against Britain if it remained isolated
But others saw Europe as a net negative
1. In the 60s, Britain's economy was very distinct from that of the great European nations
Britain had a very efficient agricultural sector, unlike France or Italy
But its industrial sector was less competitive relative to Germamy's
This meant British consumers subsidizing the inefficient French, Italian farmers through higher prices
So opening up to EC nations, would be less of an opportunity but more of a threat to British industry
The country voted 2:1 in favor of Remain.
It was a period when previously pro-Europe politicians like Margaret Thatcher turned against EU(or EC as it was then)
A company of Spanish fisherman claimed British govt was breaching European law by requiring ships in UK to have majority British ownership
Which required member nations to peg their currencies to each other
This further strengthened the view of Eurosceptics in Britain that EU as an idea was not working too well for Britain
In the 50s, the Europe project was conceived primarily to "check" Germany
In the 90-00s, it sought to become a government for all Europe
This had to do with the rise of Britain as an economic force relative to France / Germany in the 80s-90s
A status quo that prevailed even in 1990
But by 2008 the scales had shifted
1990 PCI in PPP terms
UK: $16.7K
Germany: $19.4K
France: $17.6K
2006 PCI:
UK: $34.6K
Germany: $34.2K
France: $32.4K
Britain became more confident that it can do without EU / Common market, and that the negatives of EU outweighed its positives
The decision to move away from ERM also worked out well, vindicating Euroscepticism
Germany has stolen a big march since the recession
But it was in the 90s-00s that isolationism picked steam in Britain, probably bolstered by the improved economic fortunes
Immigration made Brexit a real alternative
The net figure being 800K
Now 2.25MM is a huge huge number given that UK's population itself is barely 70MM
So clearly this was the issue that turned the public against Europe and greatly encouraged the rise of the pro-brexit UKIP party
So the Brexit option was the only way to address the concern around immigration
Though he campaigned for "Remain" (and so did most mainstream leaders), the country voted for "Leave" with a narrow 52% majority
While the trigger for Brexit may have been immigration, the opposition to the European idea has always been there
This opposition has many reasons grounded in history.
More "national" and "patriotic" relative to many Continental states where there is an air of apologia around nationalism
While Germany's forte is in its big industry, Britain has had a much smaller, more efficient agricultural sector
So it is sort of handicapped by the EU subsidies for Continental agriculture
The development of its institutions are more "evolutionary" while the Continent has seen more "revolutions"
Europe seems more alien to it culturally
So patriotism / sovereignty are weaker selling points to the German public given its disastrous setbacks in early 20th cen
The idea of Britain in a European federation which subsumes its national identity remains contrary to British national character
However given the path dependence of events, getting out of Brexit will admittedly be messy and painful
A link to one of them below