How substantial is Ukip threat?
ON this day in 1939, Germany invaded Poland and so began the Second World War to be a catalytic moment in Europe’s history. A few years after hostilities eventually ended in 1945, former enemies moved to ensure that its like would never be seen again. The creation of the European Coal and Steel Community and later the European Economic Community was something Ireland was initially detached from. However, moves to join what was to become the European Union proceeded apace from the 1950s and Ireland eventually acceded to the EU on January 1, 1973 alongside the UK and Denmark.
Ireland’s relationship with the EU has, for the most part, been largely harmonious. ‘No’ votes in the Treaty of Nice and Treaty of Lisbon referendums and concerns about EU-influenced austerity politics are not reflective of the type of Euroscepticism we see in the UK. So pronounced is anti-EU sentiment that the UK’s relationship with the EU is wavering. It seems that many in Britain are inclined to leave the EU club. The upcoming Scottish independence referendum is further complicating the tone and substance of the UK-EU debate. The reasons informing the possible ‘Brexit’ are numerous and complex, but interestingly, they are also shallow and perhaps even overstated.
