Why UK Joined the First European Union

Step by step the UK faced its decline and saw the end of the British Empire with the independence of most of its colonies and its decreasing role in the international arena where it could not compete with the USA or the Soviet Union, because it lacked the economic and material means to stand equally with the new giants. At the same time, British economy was in an important recession, losing positions with other European economies that were growing faster than the British.

The previous British predominance over the world and over Europe was ending, and a new scenario arose. The United Kingdom was still an important country in world politics but the leadership of the Western bloc was under the Americans. The first European Community was the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), an important economic sector in British industry, so the British government was interested in participating in the new community as a way to fund the deficit of the sector and gain for British producers access to German and French markets. It was an economic sector under crisis, but it also had a strong power in British politics through trade unions.

The UK sent some delegates to discuss the inclusion of the UK in the still not created ECSC, but withdrew when the principle of national sovereignty was not respected, pointing out their interest in the trade area and political cooperation, but not in integration. For the same practical reasons, the British were in conversations leading to the foundation of the European Economic Community with the Treaty of Rome, but again, as previously, they did not take part in the new community and withdrew from the final talks.

The situation was difficult for the British because their economic performance was not as good as in other parts of Europe. It was because their European partners were successful as a consequence of the Treaty of Rome and the creation of the European Common Market. As the economies of the member states integrated in an interior market with common borders, the UK was left outside, as an external partner, losing access to an important market for them, even more important after the end of the British Empire and with American predominance in the world economy. So they tried to create a parallel community in order to gain access to new markets and end the exclusion of the British from Europe