Euroscepticism and the Future of European Integration

The European Union (EU) is facing one of the rockiest periods in its existence. No time in its history has it looked so economically fragile, so unsecure about how to protect its borders, so divided over how to tackle the crisis of legitimacy facing its institutions, and so under assault of Eurosceptic parties. The unprecedented levels of integration in recent decades have led to increased public contestation, yet at the same the EU is more reliant on public support for its continued legitimacy than ever before. This work examines the role of public opinion in the European integration process. It develops a novel theory of public opinion that stresses the deep interconnectedness between people's views about European and national politics, and suggests that public opinion cannot simply be characterised as either Eurosceptic or not, but rather consists of different types

Part I. Public opinion and European integration -- Introduction: losing hearts and minds? Taking sotck of EU public opinion -- What is th matter with Europe? The puzzles of Euroscepticism -- Part II. The nature of support and scepticism -- In or out? A benchmark theory of support and scepticism -- Kicking up a fuss? From permissive to repsonsive support and scepticism -- Part III. A typology of support and scepticism -- A divided public? Types of support and scepticism -- Common people? Who are supporters and sceptics and what do they want? -- Part IV. The consequences of support and scepticism -- Going hard or soft? Party choice among supports and sceptics -- Brexit and beyond: leave and remain preferences among supporters and sceptics -- Part V. Public opinion and the future of European integration -- Change or die? EU reform preferences among supporters and sceptics -- Conclusion: a divided public, a divided union: where do we go from here?

The European Union (EU) is facing one of the rockiest periods in its existence. No time in its history has it looked so economically fragile, so unsecure about how to protect its borders, so divided over how to tackle the crisis of legitimacy facing its institutions, and so under assault of Eurosceptic parties. The unprecedented levels of integration in recent decades have led to increased public contestation, yet at the same the EU is more reliant on public support for its continued legitimacy than ever before. This work examines the role of public opinion in the European integration process. It develops a novel theory of public opinion that stresses the deep interconnectedness between people's views about European and national politics, and suggests that public opinion cannot simply be characterised as either Eurosceptic or not, but rather consists of different types.