Britain in the European Union. Law, policy and parliament

Abstract:

The debate on Europe will surely rumble on and on, and meanwhile the influence of the European Union on our major institutions and commerce grows with every passing day. This work presents reports and analysis of the major developments in Britain’s European relationship in the period between the Maastricht Treaty and the British General Election of 2001.

The work is comprised of nine contributions whose major focus is on law and policy in particular areas. Following an introduction by the editors, chapter two opens with the development of European institutions from Maastricht to the Laeken Summit, December 2001. Chapter three considers the impact of those developments in European Law on the United Kingdom’s constitution and law. Evolution of post Maastricht policy and legislative scrutiny machinery in both houses of the UK Parliament are covered in chapter four. Governance and institutional reform in the EU following the Amsterdam and Nice IGCs are explored in chapter five, with particular attention given to the continuing process of enlargement. Chapter six explores employment law and the impact of the Maastricht Social Chapter, then chapter seven examines the British ambivalence towards EMU and the single European currency. The quest for a common foreign and security policy is covered in chapter eight. The difficult issues of policy relating to immigration and asylum are reviewed in chapter nine. The impact of the EU on the devolved parliaments and executives are examined in chapter ten. The editors then conclude by updating the story to June 2003 and drawing on the earlier contributions to offer some signposts as to the way forward.

The work will interest academics, students and practitioners engaged in European Studies and European Law.

Philip Giddings is Senior Lecturer in Politics at the University of Reading. Gavin Drewry is Professor of Public Administration and Director of the Centre for Political Studies at Royal Holloway, University of London.