Britain and the crisis of the European Union

This book focuses on the effects of political and economic crises on the European Union and on the seemingly endless UK debate over Britain's position within the EU. Long described as an 'awkward partner' and in spite of Tony Blair's half-hearted attempts to engage with his partners during his time in office, the UK under a coalition government has become further estranged from other member states and EU institutions with potentially damaging consequences for the UK and the future of the EU itself.

This volume analyses the way the European sovereign debt crisis, in particular, has fuelled the further rise of radical euroscepticism in the UK against the backdrop of a deepening crisis in the British political system and wider questioning of the European project across the EU.

Contents:

Introduction
1. The political economy of the Eurozone crisis
2. British preferences in the European Union: unsung success
3. Euroscepticism in Britain: cause or symptom of the European crisis?
4. The crisis of democracy in the United Kingdom
5. Britain and the political crisis in the European Union
6. Britain and the economic crisis of the European Union
Conclusion

This book centres on the effects of the political and later economic crisis which seriously affected the European Union and its impact on the seemingly endless UK debate over Britain's position within the EU.