The LSE European Institute is delighted to announce the publication of the Future of Britain in Europe Commission's final report on 7 June 2016.
The LSE Commission on the Future of Britain in Europe aims to inform the national debate on Britain’s membership of the European Union, with high quality, evidence-based and balanced analysis. It aims to meet the public need for reliable information in the run-up to the national referendum on the renegotiated terms of Britain’s EU membership, which is to be held on Thursday 23 June 2016.
The work of the Commission has concentrated on a series of expert hearings convened by LSE academics. Participants included: senior British and EU public officials, policy practitioners, academics, think tanks, journalists and business representatives. The Hearings examined: “negotiation issues”, the options for a reconfigured UK-EU relationship and the wider impact of a Brexit on the UK, as well as on the EU as a whole.
Each convenor produced a report of their hearing which has contributed to a final Overview and Summary of reports, which sets out an overall assessment of the case for continued British EU membership or a Brexit. The European Institute launched the Commission report at a public event on Tuesday 7 June 2016.
We dedicated our investigation to the memory of the late Professor Maurice Fraser, former Head of the European Institute. The Commission was his initiative: sadly, he died in February unable to see its completion. It reflected his life-long passion for Europe and we hope we have done his memory justice.
After each hearing, Convenors have published blogs distilling their key findings on the LSE Brexit Vote Blog. Various Commission participants have also published blogs expressing their viewpoints. All Commission related Brexit Vote blogs are available here.
Join the discussion on the future of Britain in Europe on Twitter using the hashtag #LSEBrexitVote.
Convenor: Dr Waltraud Schelkle, Associate Professor of Political Economy
November 2015
Hearing blog summary by Dr Schelkle, (November 2015): 'The City and the EU: too big to stay — or too big to go?'
Hearing blog by Dr Schelkle, (January 2016): 'A double bind: Cameron urges non-discrimination in one policy area, while wanting to discriminate in another'
Convenor: Dr Anne Corbett, Associate, LSE Enterprise
December 2015
Hearing blog summary by Dr Corbett, (December 2015): 'Commission hearing: Just how much do British universities need the EU?'
Convenors: Dr Bob Hancké, Associate Professor of Political Economy
Dr Steve Coulter, LSE Fellow in Political Economy of Europe
December 2015
Hearing blog summary by Dr Coulter, (December 2015): 'Reforming UK labour regulation – in or out of the EU – would be hard work'
Convenor: Dr Eiko Thielemann, Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Policy;
Director, LSE Migration Studies Unit (MSU)
January 2016
Hearing blog summary by Dr Thielemann & Daniel Schade, (February 2016): 'Emergency brakes on migration: neither novel nor effective'
Report blog summary by Dr Thielemann & Daniel Schade, (May 2016) 'Jobs are good ones: addressing the factors that attract EU migrants to the UK'
Convenor: Professor Kevin Featherstone, Head of European Institute;
Eleftherios Venizelos Professor of Contemporary Greek Studies and Professor of European Politics;
January 2016
Hearing blog summary by Professor Featherstone, (February 2016): 'Waking up to a nightmare? A UK exit from the EU would be a ‘lose-lose’ for both sides'
Convenor: Dr Jo Eric Kushal Murkens, Associate Professor of Law
February 2016
Hearing blog summary by Dr Murkens & Sarah Trotter (March 2016): 'Fundamental rights and fundamental fears'
Convenors: Dr Spyros Economides, Director of the Hellenic Observatory;
Associate Professor of International Relations and European Politics; Dr Mareike Kleine, Associate Professor of EU and International Politics
March 2016
Hearing blog summary by Dr Economides & Julia Himmrich (May 2016): 'What price autonomy? Brexit’s effect on Britain’s soft power, trade deals and European security'
Session 1: The EU Referendum: Campaigns, Voters and the Democratic Mandate
Convenor: Professor Sara B Hobolt, Sutherland Chair in European Institutions; Deputy Head of the European Institute
Session 2: The Role of National Parliaments in the European Union
Convenor: Dr Sara Hagemann, Assistant Professor, European Institute
March 2016
Hearing blog summary by Sara Hobolt & Sara Hagemann (April 2016): 'Turn out or else: do referendum campaigns actually change voters’ minds?'
Hearing blog summary by Sara Hobolt & Sara Hagemann (April 2016): 'A vote to leave the EU may have a detrimental impact on Parliament'
Convenors: Professor Tony Travers, Director of LSE London, Professor in Practice
April 2016
Convenor: Professor Simon Glendinning, Professor of European Philosophy;
Director of the Forum for European Philosophy
April 2016
Hearing blog summary by Simon Glendinning & Roch Dunin-Wąsowicz, (June 2016): 'Ever closer to different destinations: how the renegotiation changed the EU’s aims'
Convenor: Professor Iain Begg, Professorial Research Fellow
May 2016