General Introduction

Brexit – Causes, Consequences and Meanings

In this course, Dr Tim Oliver (Loughborough University) explores Brexit in three broad areas – causes, consequences and meanings. In the first two modules, we provide a general introduction to the course as a whole as well as an outline of the proposed structure.

Between the third and eighth modules, we think about the causes of Brexit. This section of the course includes a brief introduction (in the third module) followed by five modules on five key questions: (i) why did David Cameron call an in-out referendum on Europe?; (ii) why did people want the UK leave the EU?; (iii) why did people want the UK to remain a member of the EU?; (iv) was the UK destined to leave the EU?; and (v) what effect has Britain had on the EU (and vice versa)?

Between the ninth and fourteenth modules, we think about the consequences of Brexit. Again, there is a brief introduction (in the ninth module) followed by five key questions: (i) what impact has Brexit had on UK-EU relations?; (ii) what impact has Brexit had on British politics?; (iii) has Brexit solved Britain’s European question?; (iv) what does Brexit mean for the EU and the rest of the world?; and (v) who are Brexit’s ‘winners’ and ‘losers’?

Between the fifteenth and twentieth modules, we think about the meanings of Brexit. The questions this time are: (i) what does Brexit mean?; (ii) what theoretical approaches best explain Brexit?; (iii) how can we measure the success and failure of Brexit?; (iv) is Brexit a ‘critical juncture’ in British political history?; and (v) Is Brexit unique to the UK?

Finally, in the twenty-first and concluding module, we offer seven key rules when discussing Brexit.

General Introduction

In this module, we provide an introduction to Brexit, focusing in particular on: (i) four key reasons why Brexit is worthy of study; and (ii) how we should approach the study of Brexit.