POL 295C: The UK and the EU

(Stephen Crowley) 4 credits, prerequisite: none. Enrollment cap: 20. This course will focus on the European Union, as, in one scholar's words, "the world's most highly institutionalized and rule-constrained project of regional cooperation," and, particularly, on the UK's sometimes-reluctant partnership with European integration. The course will begin with a solid foundation of the evolution of the EU and its current institutions. It will then examine a number of conflicts that have arisen in Britain over EU policy. These include the decision to retain the pound instead of adopting the Euro, Britain's liberal economic and social policies versus the "social model" found in continental Europe, the concern with a "democracy deficit" in EU decision-making, and unease over recent EU expansion and the waves of immigration it has generated. In addition, we will explore Britain's "Atlanticist" (or pro-US) foreign policy, which has been increasingly at odds with core EU members calling for a more independent Europ ean foreign policy. We will hear from representatives of various parts of the British political spectrum to learn how all of these issues are currently playing themselves out in British politics. Besides revealing cleavages in British politics, these conflicts will help expose the fault lines in the project for future European integration.