Brexit and the European Union

By Sarah Benewith, Hannah Grayson, Pippa Walton, Gretchen Roderick, & Emma Endres

In the past 30 years, there have arguably been three major historical events with widespread international consequences: the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001, and Brexit just this past summer. While the effects of the Berlin Wall and 9/11 have long been felt and analyzed, Brexit has left the world in somewhat of a panic.

What is Brexit? What is the European Union?
          Brexit, an abbreviation for “British exit”, refers to the British referendum on June 23, 2016 in which British citizens voted to leave the European Union. It was immediately evident that Brexit would drastically change Britain. Not only did the statistical results highlight how divided the county was, but the major pro-Brexit political parties all changed leadership; this included the resignation of the Prime Minister (“How divided”, 2016). However, the effects of Brexit on the European Union (EU) remain uncertain. After the initial shock of Brexit and the surge of people googling “What is the EU?”, the world began to consider what would happen next to the European Union.

British demonstrators in an anti-Brexit protest

        The idea of a structure like the European Union came about following the social and economic catastrophes of World War I and World War II, when the Allied powers in Europe sought a structure that would promote economic cooperation and more specifically prevent France and Germany from future disputes. They hoped that this economic cooperation would eventually lead to political cooperation. Starting with smaller, less invasive economic agreements, the states of the European Community slowly built up to the overarching structure now known as the European Union. The EU has effectively tied the continent together, based on the concept of economic interdependence. The countries who signed the Schengen Agreement, which does not include the UK, have open borders (allowing free travel between states), charge no tariffs or duties on traded goods, and impose high tariffs on goods imported from outside the EU. It is simple and effective to travel between countries and to access a larger market for goods, promoting expansion; if one country profits, so do the rest (“European Union,” 2014).

What are the causes of Brexit?
          Immediately following the UK's introduction into the European Union in the 1970s, there has been constant opposition to the membership among the British public and various British governments. This partially stems from the UK’s history of being strongly independent and being the least integrated into continental Europe. Historically, the UK has been isolated from the rest of Europe both religiously, exemplified by England’s own established church, and geographically, since the UK is a group of islands. Additionally, many British media sources have showed an anti-EU bias ever since the UK joined, demonstrating that propaganda (like Brexit: The Movie) potentially influenced public opinion. Moreover, it was politicians who took the lead in promoting Brexit, hoping for personal gain. Thus, a plethora of pro-Brexit campaigns came about. Several British public and political figures were influential in saying that economically, the UK did not need the EU, citing that Britain has the second largest economy in the EU and that Britain uses the pound, not the euro, as currency. Additionally, there was no strong counter argument made about the benefits of the EU, which may have changed public opinion. This is exemplified by the Scottish National Party’s pro-EU campaign, which led Scotland to vote 62% to remain in the EU (“EU Referendum Results,” n.d.). Overall, the lack of trust in the EU caused public discontent in the UK. This dissatisfaction led the former Prime Minister David Cameron to promise the public, with the personal intention of being re-elected, a referendum vote on leaving the European Union, the “Brexit” we now know. 

What does this mean for the EU?
          Since the implementation of the EU in the 1990s, and through the introduction of the euro, this union has been highly successful. However, the economic crisis of 2008 in the United States had impacts across the Atlantic, and the Eurozone suffered. Greece’s economy crashed, leading to a huge recession, and the entire EU has been trying to save the country before the euro collapses and the system falls apart. Since 2010, multiple countries have considered ceding from the EU, Great Britain is the first to officially do so. The Vote Leave campaign (in favor of Brexit), which, among other things, claimed that Great Britain sent 50 million pounds a day to the EU, and that after leaving the EU the government would donate 350 million pounds to the National Health Service a week (Travis, 2016). These claims were quickly proven to be false after the referendum, but they still convinced the public that leaving the EU was an economically sound idea. Before the referendum was even over, the value of the British pound dropped from $1.47 to $1.37, the greatest drop in history, and currently stands at $1.30 (Soffen, 2016). By the morning after the referendum, both domestic and international investors pulled their money out of the stock market. Without membership of the EU, Britain will no longer be able to enjoy duty free trade, and therefore will have to pay tariffs on all imported goods. While nothing has been confirmed, the U.K. is attempting to exit the union as quickly as possible; more official jurisdiction will arise as more summits are held. In some ways, Brexit has assisted a small sector of the economy: more foreigners are planning vacations and buying British goods before Brexit is put into action. However, for the population of the UK, travel has become far more expensive and the cost of living is going to rise. For the remaining members of the EU, the next few years will be instrumental in terms of the resulting economy of the union.

          Along with the important economic consequences of Brexit, it is also very important to discuss the social and political impact that the referendum will have on the United Kingdom, Europe, and the rest of the world. Socially speaking, the people of Great Britain have become divided, not only from Europe but from each other as well. Tensions are rising between the nations that make up the UK, especially those who voted overwhelmingly to remain part of the EU. Now both Scotland, where 62% voted Remain and Northern Ireland, where 56% voted Remain, are in the spotlight concerning possible referendums of their own (“EU Referendum Results,” n.d.). Also, the youth who voted in are now at odds with the older generations who voted out, resulting in ageism in the country on both sides, and hate crimes have been reported to have gone up by 57% due to rising dissent towards refugees and the Arab population (“How divided,” 2016). Politically, the main issue present is that of immigration and of the refugee crisis. Once Britain is officially no longer a part of the European Union, workers from neighboring countries will possibly have to apply for work permits, as opposed to a “points-based” system of immigration, and students studying abroad will possibly have a much harder time going to school in the UK. These measures, among others, are put in place to curb immigration into the country, an issue that prompted many to vote out of the EU. However, this will also impede Brits attempting to move out of the country and into the EU, like the 1.2 million Brits currently living abroad in the EU. Still, it is clear the Brexit is a turning point in Europe; the social, political, and economic circumstances of the continent remain up in the air.

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