While many British conservatives favor a UK withdrawal from the European Union, the conservative Prime Minister David Cameron has stated that he does not believe that it would be in the country’s best interests to leave the organization. Although Cameron has sided with the liberals on this issue, his reasoning is consistent with common conservative principals. Cameron views the current crisis in the Eurozone as an opportunity for EU members to change their perception of the role of the EU. Rather than seeing the EU as a bloc of nations with the aim of enforcing collective action through restrictive policies, Cameron suggests that Europeans see the EU as a “network.” This would involve loosening restrictions, granting more sovereignty to individual countries, and adopting policies that would free up markets within and beyond the EU.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Euro crisis 'opportunity for UK' to reclaim powers
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The United Kingdom is making a good decision by not withdrawing from the European Union. They would lose more than they would gain from a withdrawal. It could also possibly negatively affect the European Union. It is unstable enough already, and one of its members leaving would only disrupt the already precarious balance within the European Union. I do not think that the United Kingdom would want to leave. They are better off than many other EU nations since they kept their currency and did not adopt the euro. This gives them somewhat of a head above the other EU nations. I think that the United Kingdom’s plan to say within the EU is the proper decision to be made.
ReplyDeleteComing from a neo-liberal point of view, I believe in keeping international institutions. Even though there may be periods where international institutions seem to fail, I believe these institutions do have some significant value to them. Therefore, I’m in opposition with the Conservative Party in Britain. I believe if they will withdraw from the European Union (EU) [I really do not think it is going to happen], but wouldn’t there be a penalty for their actions? What happens when other countries pull out? Plus, Britain is not in the European Monetary Union, so why would they want to leave? This article makes the argument that Britain would have more control over their trade and policies. Well, here is another question to ask: Why did you [Britain] join in the first place?
ReplyDeleteThis blog is quite interesting considering the fact that we already discussed this in class about how it would or wouldnt benefit a country from leaving the European Union, or the EU. I think it is of great interest for the UK to stay a part of the EU because the EU's regulations may sometimes seem too overwhelming but Britain on its own may end up becoming worse economy wise. So it is better for all of the countries who are already part of the EU to stay a part of the Union because it would fare them well rather than all doing their own thing because that would significantly effect businesses and trade between nations since no regulations will be in place as to how to conduct things. So the countries who are already part of the Union will be negatively affected since most of the countriese do tend to work along with each other.
ReplyDeleteGood old Great Britain, always works with an imperialist mind set. The people who inhabit that island have an insatiable thirst to dominate and control those around them. I feel that the sole reason Cameron wants to stay in the European Union is he foresees the opportunity for Britain to make a power play and assume the seat at the head of the table. No one can blame him, while the EU is a community they still partake in a competitive free market where it would be beneficial for an individual nation to jockey for position if the opportunity arose.
ReplyDeleteI think your right in pointing out that the British wouldn't want to loose the political power of being and EU member. In modern politics the ability to cohere other nations is becoming more and more paramount. Regardless of England's particularities when it comes to sovereignty, the loss of such control is worth very little in comparison to the power that EU membership gets the UK throughout Europe. If anything this whole crisis has simply displayed for everyone the underlying stratification of power within the EU that normally hides under the mask of equity. In tough times the more powerful nations like England and Germany will be making the decisions for Europe.
ReplyDeleteI too enjoyed this blog since we discussed the pros and cons of leaving the European Union in class. For me, the decision is simple. Although the EU is not perfect, it would be detrimental for the United Kingdom to leave it since almost 80% of their trade is done with their EU partners. Foreign investment would dry up and major companies would relocate and take their jobs and income with them. Likewise, the UK’s exporters would find it difficult to sell goods abroad. I agree with Mr. Cameron that Britain must stay in the EU so it can retain its influence over the open and free market.
ReplyDeleteIf Great Britain were to leave the European Union, it would prove to be lethal to their economy. Yes, if Great Britain were free of the European Union, they would have political freedom, but at what cost? Britain’s economy would suffer a lot more than a few extra regulations on Parliament. Britain’s industry would be subdued with higher tariffs, since more than half of trade is done with members of the Union. Also, it’s economy has prospered being the EU since Britain didn’t adopt the Euro; they are in a very favorable position and slight regulations should not be reason enough to place the nation’s economy in jeopardy.
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ReplyDeleteI was pretty excited to see this topic upon opening the site, especially after the extensive debate we conducted in class on this topic. I guess this grants me the forum I never received in class to present my argument that the Euro has been greatly "overvalued" in its comparison to other currencies like the U.S. dollar and British Pound. Surely it is superior to the dollar in "monetary value" but if you check out this site, you can see that the Euro has actually performed worse (in terms of % increase or decrease) in several periods on the 10 year scale. http://www.xe.com/currencycharts
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