It is more that 40 years since the British electorate was asked to vote on whether the country should stay in the EU. David Cameron’s reasons for calling a referendum, which may take place in 2016, are similar to those of his counterpart in that long-distant, earlier poll
For those of us who witnessed the successive efforts of Conservative and Labour governments to be admitted to what was then known as the European Economic Community (EEC), the very notion that we should now be contemplating leaving the European Union (EU) is difficult to comprehend.But as Sir Stephen Wall, the former diplomat, points out in his magisterial The Official History of Britain and the European Community (Vol II), David Watt, the political commentator of The Financial Times, sounded a
29 December 2015, The Tablet
Lessons from history as 40-year anniversary of referendum on EU passes
Get Instant Access
Continue Reading
Register for free to read this article in full
Subscribe for unlimited access
From just £30 quarterly
Complete access to all Tablet website content including all premium content.
The full weekly edition in print and digital including our 179 years archive.
PDF version to view on iPad, iPhone or computer.
Already a subscriber? Login