This thesis researches the discursive construction of Brexit, placing it into a framework of a British Eurosceptic tradition. Political discourses are compared between the 1975 referendum on EEC...Show moreThis thesis researches the discursive construction of Brexit, placing it into a framework of a British Eurosceptic tradition. Political discourses are compared between the 1975 referendum on EEC membership and the 2016 Brexit referendum, allowing for a historical contextualisation of British European discourse. In doing so, striking parallels are found in the discourse employed by the 1975 ‘Out’ and the 2016 ‘Leave’ campaigners. Through a critical discourse analysis, themes of national interest, sovereignty, security, historical and imperial memory, British exceptionalism, and Othering are demonstrated to be apparent in British European discourses. The continued salience of such themes throughout the years thereby arguably contribute to the perpetuation of the British Eurosceptic tradition.Show less
Including the study of personality into the study of attitudes towards the EU can contribute to a better, more detailed and nuanced understanding as personality offers the possibility to account...Show moreIncluding the study of personality into the study of attitudes towards the EU can contribute to a better, more detailed and nuanced understanding as personality offers the possibility to account for differences between individuals. These differences are important as they can result in variance in political thought and action. In a quantitative study (N = 186) conducted in the Netherlands this research investigates the direct effect of personality on EU support as well as the indirect effect of personality, mediated by ideology on EU support. Therefore, this study measures personality, EU support and ideological self-placement and conducts a mediation analysis. The results show a significant direct relationship between the personality trait agreeableness and EU support but no significant indirect effects and emphasize the importance of incorporating psychology into the study of public opinion in the EU.Show less
This research firstly analyses mainstream centre-right party manifestos in order to establish variation in their support for European Integration. Afterwards the study aims at explaining the...Show moreThis research firstly analyses mainstream centre-right party manifestos in order to establish variation in their support for European Integration. Afterwards the study aims at explaining the observed variation by looking at four explanatory variables.Show less
The 2014 Spitzenkandidaten procedure for nominating a candidate for the European Commission Presidency sought to render the (s)election process more democratically legitimate. However, despite its...Show moreThe 2014 Spitzenkandidaten procedure for nominating a candidate for the European Commission Presidency sought to render the (s)election process more democratically legitimate. However, despite its successful emergence, 2019 saw the repudiation of the Spitzenkandidaten. Adopting a multi-method approach that speaks to current literature on the EU’s perceived democratic deficit, this thesis highlights that from pluralist, libertarian, social democratic, and deliberative democracy perspectives the 2014 Spitzenkandidaten improved the democratic legitimacy of the Commission Presidency, reducing the EU’s democratic deficit. This thesis further finds that the repudiation of the Spitzenkandidaten in 2019 constituted a retraction of this democratic legitimacy from three of the four philosophical perspectives, expanding the democratic deficit accordingly. Utilising the insights of MEPs further enhances these findings, grounding them in theoretical and practical terms. As one of the initial studies that have analysed the impact of the Spitzenkandidaten following its repudiation in 2019, this research holds significant potential to inform our understanding of the current shape of contemporary European democracy and the EU’s democratic deficit.Show less
In 2017, the European Commission, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament came together to agree upon the introduction of a “European Pillar of Social Rights” - the EPSR. It entails a set...Show moreIn 2017, the European Commission, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament came together to agree upon the introduction of a “European Pillar of Social Rights” - the EPSR. It entails a set of 20 social principles already recognized as binding in the EU social acquis, or that are yet to be implemented at EU or the domestic level. A recent deliverable thereof includes the Work-Life Balance Directive adopted in 2019. This thesis seeks to determine whether the EPSR can facilitate equal sharing of care within families and explores alternative approaches to that effect. The thesis argues that whereas the EPSR may have been criticized for merely paying lip service to social Europe, its strengths lie in its flexibility. A non-rigid approach to advancing social rights accommodates a wide diversity of preferences and facilitates enhanced cooperation as well as coordination of policy which both on the long term as well as on the short term may contribute to the advancement of social rights on an EU level, in particular in the field of care sharing in the family.Show less
The downing of Flight MH17 in July 2014 constitutes a major crisis and a critical juncture in Dutch foreign policy towards Russia. This critical juncture created the conditions under which a...Show moreThe downing of Flight MH17 in July 2014 constitutes a major crisis and a critical juncture in Dutch foreign policy towards Russia. This critical juncture created the conditions under which a significant change in Dutch foreign policy towards Russia became possible as institutional constraints were suddenly loosened. By using process tracing this thesis studies the changes in Dutch foreign policy and the causal mechanism behind them following the downing of the airplane. The Dutch government initially took on a cautious position as it was hoping Russia could be convinced to cooperate with the investigation. However as the Kremlin continually spreads disinformation about Flight MH17 and consistently seeks to discredit and undermine the investigations, the Dutch government started to use more confrontational and less accommodating diplomatic tools. This is evidenced by the way in which the Dutch government exposed the foiled OPCW hacking attempt by the GRU as well as how it criticised Russia’s behaviour surrounding the downing of Flight MH17.Show less
