As we all know from the Roman Empire, big empires go down if the borders are not well-protected… so we really have an imperative that it is handled.
Mark Rutte, Dutch PM
Charlie made an optimistic and sensible case that Britain’s economic future is much brighter outside the EU than in it. He made the useful distinction that Europe is not the European Union and that political centralisation is the core concept of the modern EU. It’s time to go.
That said, Britain’s decision may be influenced by whether the EU can do something basic like protect its borders. The Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, made the point directly in the quote at the top of today’s letter. If you can’t protect your borders, you’re not going to be a viable empire.
European Hotel California
The European Union isn’t an empire in the sense the Soviet Union was an empire, or that Rome was. That is, it didn’t grow and enrich itself through military conquest of its neighbours. But to remain an imperial economic state, it has to keep member states in economic vassalage. The European Union has become like the Hotel California: you can check out anytime you like but you can never leave.
The immigration crisis is changing the landscape of European politics. A fuller discussion of how is beyond the scope of today’s letter. But here’s a thought: if the elected politicians pushing for “ever closer union” lose their jobs in populist revolts, can the European Union keep it together? Or will the unelected EU leaders in Brussels find yet another way to keep it going?
For more on this, see Charlie’s interview with Steve Baker.
Category: The End of Europe