Research Papers

One of the enduring elements of British Euroscepticism is the argument that the people have been insufficiently consulted on Britain’s continued and increased engagement in the process of European integration. Indeed it is often held that the British public were misled, if not deliberately misinformed, in the debates and discussions leading up to the 1975 Referendum on the future of the ‘Common Market’. At every key stage of European integration since then, especially moments of crisis, there have been calls from British Eurosceptics for another popular referendum. It remains a siren call. During the current Eurozone crisis that call has grown in volume with large numbers of Conservative MPs demanding a referendum, even though Britain has no tradition of popular referendums. Within the considerable academic literature on British Euroscepticism references to the demands for referendums abound, but this continued element is worthy of more focused analysis. This paper will explore the appeal of a populist referendum among Eurosceptic protagonists even though ruling governments have consistently been ever so reluctant to agree on having another one.