On the Edge : Britain and Europe

During the past twenty years the British discussion of European issues has increasingly lost contact with reality or rationality.Wilful ignorance, political opportunism and media manipulationhave unrecognizably distorted the European debate in the UnitedKingdom. Even those in theory favourable to a central and constructiveBritish role in the European Union have found themselvesendorsing many of the premises of their opponents. In thisshort book, British attitudes to the European Union, particularlythose of the media and political classes, will be criticallyreviewed. The authors conclude that Britain''s position within theUnion is currently in great jeopardy; and that those who sincerelywish to ward off this danger need fundamentally to reconsiderthe political tactics and rhetoric they have employed until now.