Post-Brexit Scenario: The European Union under Threat

Abstract

Around 60 years after signing of the Treaty of Rome, which led to the establishment of the European Economic Community (EEC), the European Union (EU) is struggling with the aftermath of eurozone and migration crisis and the rise of anti-EU and populist movements all across Europe. Britain’s decision to move out of the EU, further adds to the challenges faced by the EU and put its regional integration in question. This paper tries to expose the factors that led to Brexit, analyses whether the EU is headed towards disintegration and what reforms are needed to save the EU model of regional integration from disintegration. Brexit was a complex interplay of factors such as a threat to national identity and sovereignty, rising inequality and economic insecurity and Euroscepticism. The results indicate that in post-Brexit, support for the EU has increased in member states. The economic losses and political chaos that Britain had to undergo post-Brexit has united the EU members despite the rise of populist movements across Europe. However, the EU needs to bring in some structural reforms and make the EU institutions more democratic and flexible in order to sustain as a model of regional integration.