Britain's Entry into the EEC: Veto, Accession, and the ECA 1972

Britain's Initial Resistance to the EEC

The British government feared that joining the EEC would damage special bonds with the Commonwealth, potentially leading to a loss of commercial advantage due to existing commercial agreements.

Economic and Political Concerns

Politically, Britain feared that accession to the EEC could mean the end of the British nation and resisted the idea of a European political union.

The Demand for a Free Trade Area

The UK emphasized its refusal to join a customs union. The British government defended the establishment of a free trade area where internal customs duties were abolished, but national governments maintained the competence to enact their own tariffs with regard to third countries.

The Shift: Economic Decline and Veto

By 1961, the United Kingdom indicated its willingness to join the Common Market. The reason was that while the EEC witnessed spectacular economic growth, with growth rates in the sixties clearly superior to those in America, Great Britain continued its downward economic trend in relation to the Continent.

However, admittance was not easy. The French leader, Charles De Gaulle, vetoed British accession to the EEC in 1963.

Charles De Gaulle's Veto

De Gaulle was determined to build a Europe of the old countries that would become a third superpower between the USA and the USSR. He suspected Britain's close ties with Washington. Although De Gaulle defended a strong Europe against the US and the Soviet Union, he never believed in a politically united Europe.

Successful Accession and the Treaty of Rome

Only the resignation of De Gaulle in 1969, for reasons of home affairs, opened up the possibility of British accession. With Georges Pompidou as president, the British Prime Minister Edward Heath managed to ensure the UK signed the Treaty of Rome in a ceremony in Brussels in 1972.

This accession was enabled by the European Communities Act 1972 (ECA), the instrument whereby the UK was able to join the European Union (then known as the European Economic Community).

The European Communities Act 1972

The terms of the ECA 1972 are crucial to the analysis of the EU legal order. Two principles that give effect to Community law within the UK are found in Section 2(1) and Section 2(4) of the Act.

Key Principles of the ECA 1972

• Section 2(1): States that the UK must enforce all rights directly resulting from the treaties and Community law.
• Section 2(4): Provides that English law should be interpreted and has effect subject to the principle that European law is supreme. This means that European law now takes precedence over all domestic sources of law.