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Kavanagh et al: British Politics 5e

Chapter 09

The Europeanisation of British politics?

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Britain in the EU
www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391674
This is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's gateway to material on Britain in the European Union. You can access material on the workings of EU institutions, find explanations for terminology used in relation to the EU and review a series of frequently asked questions. Particularly valuable however is the News and Resources section of the site which provides news, links to speeches on the EU by British ministers and government publications.

The European Movement
www.euromove.org.uk/
The European Movement was established in 1948 and its British wing was founded a year later. It is a lobbying organisation which seeks to create a united, Federal Europe. Its website provides news, policy reports and export briefings on European issues in line with such a Europhile perspective.

The Bruges Group
www.brugesgroup.com/
The Bruges Group is a Eurosceptic think tank established in February 1989. It was created as a response to Margaret Thatcher's September 1988 speech to the College of Europe at Bruges. Here you will find a comprehensive source of Eurosceptic analysis of the European Union. There is also an exhaustive collection of links to other Eurosceptic organisations on the site.

The European Foundation
www.europeanfoundation.org/
The European Foundation is a think-tank which emerged out of the Conservative backbench campaign against the Maastricht Treaty and which is currently chaired by William Cash MP. There is the usual proliferation of pamphlets that one would expect from a think-tank's website, but what is particularly valuable is that you can download full-text copies of the Foundation's 'Eurorealist' journal (click on 'Our Publications).

The United Kingdom Independence Party
www.ukip.org
The United Kingdom Independence Party was founded in 1993, emerging from the Anti-Federalist League which had campaigned against the Maastricht Treaty. Committed to withdrawal from the European Union it has enjoyed mixed political fortunes, reaching its electoral peak thus far in the 2004 European Parliament elections. Like the other, larger political parties, its website provides details of the party's representatives, its aims and its policies.