Britain and the European Union Analysing the Pro–Enlargement Policy of a Eurosceptic State From 1975 to 2014

Britain's 2016 Brexit referendum has become a severe trauma for the EU elites, who persistently argue that the European integration process is happening in a supranational way and the member states are gradually merging into the EU's supranational pot. Moreover, Brexit has clearly showed that the nation-state is still an important actor in the European integration process and its national interests significantly affect its behaviour within the EU. However, the supranational hegemony constructed in the European integration process since the 1950s has barely provided information about the nation-state due to the dislike of the nationalism which caused the devastating Second World War. As a result, today, we desperately need further knowledge on the nation-state as a key actor within the European integration process.