United by Reformation: Why northern European Euroscepticism is rooted in religious history

Why is public opinion in some countries principally pro-European while largely eurosceptic in others? Although the debate on EU integration has mainly formed around economic and identity-based arguments, Margarete Scherer draws on the European Social Survey to highlight religion as another dimension. She suggests political culture is explained in part by historical associations between church and state, and that the divergence in Catholic and Protestant conventions still affects sentiments not only on EU integration but on social protection as well.

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