What are the background and the consequences of the divorce between the European Union and the United Kingdom

Abstract

23 June 2016 was the crucial date when the citizens of the United Kingdom voted to exit the European Union in a nationwide referendum. This thesis covers the legal, political, economic, and historical relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union before and during their time together, the actual referendum, the complex and long withdrawal procedure, and the changes this so-called “divorce” brought both to the United Kingdom and the European Union. Despite its many decades of membership, the United Kingdom never fully integrated within the European Union, which, quite possibly, led to the referendum being in favor of Brexit. Notwithstanding the outcome of the referendum, delivering Brexit and completing the relative negotiations and the procedure took more than four years, with various disagreements and political changes. This thesis takes on the historical research approach and reflects on the possible future scenario of the relationships between the United Kingdom and the European Union.