Publisher's Synopsis
This book explains why Britain remained aloof from what was to become the first stage in the development of the European Community. The argument of the book is that abstention was grounded in a set of attitudes that regarded the British state as in some way unique; as fundamentally different from its continental counterparts in its constitutional characteristics, its relationship with its domestic society and its roles in the world system. Moreover, this was an analysis shared by Governments of both main parties, Labour and Conservative, over the two years of 1950-2, during which the decision on BritainÆs relations with the Schuman Plan, or European Coal and Steel Community remained open. -
