Europe in Search of a New Settlement. EU-UK Relations and the Politics of European Integration

'The EU must be able to act with the speed and flexibility of a network, not the cumbersome rigidity of a bloc' – this was the essence of David Cameron’s critique in his long-awaited speech on Britain’s relationship with Europe in January 2013.

Cameron's speech was a vivid reminder of how political debates about the future shape and direction of the EU have moved from the backroom to the front row: European integration has been re-politicised and has firmly entered the electoral arena. This is positive news.

In this debate, questions of political economy and institutional change are intimately connected: can the single market be sheltered from the eurozone’s regulatory steamroller? Is there a life for non-euro members and for other cooperation circles in a more flexible EU? How can the euro work better for all, export and import countries, north and south, without giving in too much to centralisation against popular will? How can EU policymakers reconcile conflicting demands for a more effective EU with greater ownership by states and citizens?

This Policy Network publication seeks to provide guidance and clarity on some of these questions. Nine leading thinkers on EU affairs highlight the range of strategic options and preferences which ultimately have to be reconciled.

Contents:
+ Political choices in a polarised Europe, by Olaf Cramme & Renaud Thillaye

A Europe of competing visions
+ The EU five years from now? Integration, like it or not, by Sylvie Goulard
+ Beyond Europe’s zero-sum game, by Paweł Świeboda
+ Two Europes?, by Thierry Chopin

An ever closer eurozone?
+ EU quo vadis redux, by André Sapir
+ Towards a (more) political union, by Jakob von Weizsäcker
+ A social compact for European cohesion, by Paolo Reboani

The British question
+ On the outside looking in: the fate of Britain in Europe?, by Anthony Teasdale
+ Cameron’s European gambit, by Kathleen R. McNamara
+ Adapt and overcome: The institutional strength of the EU, by Stephen Wall