Britain's relationship with European Union - Essay Example

However as Schmidt suggests the problems of Britain in adapting to European policies are not related with the EU changes in government practice or EU related changes in the policies of the EU nations although these changes seem to have been significant for these countries and have affected politics, governance and decision making. However the fact that Britain has problems adjusting to EU changes could be related to the fact that the EU policy changes have never been justified or explained within the context of discourse on EU policies or EU law (Schmidt, 2006).

Schmidt points out that France had greater changes in policies and practices and greater challenges to ideas than Britain although in cases of Germany and Italy there haven't been too many significant changes due to EU policies. Thus Britain's adjustment problems with EU policies should be comparatively less than France but more than certain other nations. Baker (2005) studied on the enlargement and expansion of the European Union to its membership of 25 as also the agreement on the EU constitution and elections of the EP.

These events occurred in 2004. Baker focuses on the fact that the Blair government emphasises on helping to promote better relationships between the US and the EU and although this constrained the EU policy for Britain, the fact that Blair had some support for EU policy was a tool to influence the British public which is obviously more pro Europe rather than pro America. Within the British parliament, Britain's policies on the EU and its policies towards America seem to have contradictory implications and in certain cases spark intra party and inter party disputes (Schmidt, 2006; Baker 2005).

Political analysts have argued that despite Britain's apparent closeness to the United States in recent times especially during the Iraq war; historically Britain has been much closer to Europe than to America. Although it was widely speculated that Britain's membership in the EEC could lead to a complete breakdown in its relationship with America, 30 years now, this may not have really happened. In fact the question of Britain's relationship with America is not so much under speculation or doubt as Britain's ambiguous relationship with the European Union.

Britain unsuccessfully applied for membership within the EEC in 1961 but within the context of major controversies and the fact that the UK had a special relationship with the US in terms of sharing nuclear weapons. However despite Britain's reluctant approach to the concept of the European Union, Britain joined as a member of the EEC in the 1970s. The election of the Labour party in 1997 led to a more euro friendly approach of government although Blair also seems to emphasise on UK as acting as some sort of bridge between the EU and the US.

The 1997 Amsterdam treaty helped Britain maintain its own border controls and despite its membership into the EEC, Britain seems to have stayed away from the crux of EU policies and approaches giving rise to speculations on whether Britain's relationship with EU will ever be resolved and whether Britain could ever be fully integrated within the European Union. The remark made by Ernest Bevin, who was the Labour Foreign secretary in 1949: "our