Angela Merkel, Barack Obama and David Cameron.

Lost illusions on Europe

In his forthcoming speech on Europe, due on January 18, UK Prime Minister David Cameron must take account of the Conservative Party’s eurosceptic mood, but above all speak for the country rather than the party and keep Britain in Europe, argues a Financial Times editorial.

Published on 14 January 2013 at 15:01
Angela Merkel, Barack Obama and David Cameron.

The United Kingdom has long been a reluctant European. From the moment of accession to the then European Economic Community, four decades ago, its membership has been marked by misguided assumptions and missed opportunities.

The UK’s troubled relationship is a matter of culture, geography and history. Britain is a post-imperial power with an affinity to other English-speaking countries, especially the US. Mutual incomprehension between the UK and Europe comes down to a basic difference in outlook: while the UK sees membership of the club in economic terms, France and Germany, the co-founders, see the European Union as a political project forged from the ashes of the second world war.

Hardening divisions

These divisions have hardened in the wake of the eurozone crisis. Europe’s response, though initially faltering, has since stripped away the illusion that the Continental notion of an “ever closer union” is a figment of fevered imaginations in Brussels. Faced with the euro’s collapse, the case for a more integrated economic government is now received wisdom in all European capitals, including London.

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