Oct
28
How the EU works: A guide for British readers
- The UK Government lobbies, via its representatives on the mainland, for European legislation to take a particular course. Just like in national parliaments, deals are done and suchlike. Unlike, national parliaments, it can undertake these actions safe in the knowledge that practically nobody in the UK will notice.
- (Optional) It issues a consultation on the implementation of such legislation, knowing perfectly well that the response will be overwhelmingly negative
- (Optional) The response to the consultation could go either way; if it decides to press ahead, the timing will be such that any EU-sourced legislation would coincide neatly with it
- The EU directive is passed, working pretty much how the UK government wanted it to, but would never admit
- The deadline for national implementation draws close, and legislation is drawn up in parliament
- The legislation passes without much debate, because everybody knows it’s going to happen anyway
- Officials talk to sympathetic hacks off the record and indicate that the Government didn’t want to implement anything like the EU Directive, because it’s far too {harsh,mean,expensive,lenient,tolerant,intolerant}, or whatever, but we’re left with no choice.
- The Daily Mail prints a front-page article about how terrible the EU is and how it’s making a mockery of the Houses.
- Everybody forgets that it was the UK Government’s idea in the first place and (optionally) there was even a consultation on it.
- The opposition complain about the EU publicly to win eurosceptic votes, but their MEPs voted in line with the Government position in any case.
