Brexit and Political Personality: The Psychological Profiles of Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn

Author(s):  
Christ’l De Landtsheer ◽  
Shana Hollander ◽  
Peter Maene

This article focuses on the role of personality in the case of Brexit, the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union on January 31, 2020. A decisive step in Brexit were the general elections on December 12, 2019, in which Boris Johnson, Conservative Prime Minister of the UK and advocate of Brexit, defeated Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party and ‘neutral’ about Brexit. Political psychology considers personality as a major factor in political developments. This article presents the results of an assessment of the personalities of Johnson and Corbyn, and it argues that the personality of these key players influenced the Brexit process. The analysis is based on the theory and methods of Immelman, Immelman & Steinberg, and Mastenbroek. Our findings suggest that Johnson’s charismatic personality, his dominant leadership style, and his negotiating skills contributed to his electoral victory and to the realization of Brexit. Johnson profited from Corbyn’s lack of personal charisma and from his undecisive and divisive leadership regarding Brexit.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-346
Author(s):  
David Mangan*

2020 had been marked as a significant year for the UK with its departure from the European Union. The coronavirus pandemic quickly became the most important issue facing the Government under a third Prime Minister since the 2016 referendum. From the start, problems have dogged this Government in meeting the monumental challenges posed by Covid-19. The UK approached the work implications of this pandemic in some distinct ways, as compared to European Union Member States. This piece is longer than other country reports in this volume as a result of critically engaging with these differences.


This book provides the first comprehensive analysis of the withdrawal agreement concluded between the United Kingdom and the European Union to create the legal framework for Brexit. Building on a prior volume, it overviews the process of Brexit negotiations that took place between the UK and the EU from 2017 to 2019. It also examines the key provisions of the Brexit deal, including the protection of citizens’ rights, the Irish border, and the financial settlement. Moreover, the book assesses the governance provisions on transition, decision-making and adjudication, and the prospects for future EU–UK trade relations. Finally, it reflects on the longer-term challenges that the implementation of the 2016 Brexit referendum poses for the UK territorial system, for British–Irish relations, as well as for the future of the EU beyond Brexit.


2002 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Ring ◽  
Roddy McKinnon

Across the European Union, national governments are re-assessing the institutional mechanisms through which pension provision is delivered. This articles sets the debate within the wider context of the ‘pillared’ structural analysis often adopted by international institutions when discussing pensions reform. It then sets out a detailed discussion of developments in the UK, arguing that the UK is moving towards a model of reform akin to that promoted by the World Bank – referred to here as ‘pillared-privatisation’. The themes of this model indicate more means-testing, greater private provision, and a shift of the burden of risk from the government to individuals. An assessment is then made of the implications of UK developments for other EU countries. It is suggested that while there are strong reasons to think that other countries will not travel as far down the road of ‘pillared-privatisation’ as the UK, this should not be taken as a ‘given’.


Author(s):  
Ludovic Highman

On such divisive issues as EU membership and, consequently, the post-Brexit relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, it is unsurprising that Theresa May’s government has been torn between a “hard” and a “soft” Brexit. As of June 2018, there is still no indication of which approach will prevail, putting at risk UK universities’ participation in the Erasmus+ program, which has provided, among other things, opportunities for over four million Europeans to study, train, and volunteer abroad since its inception. Full access to EU research funds is also at risk. Universities cannot depend on the UK government’s help in securing the frameworks allowing for continuity. In such a context, universities have started to use their limited resources to secure bilateral international and European links to foster research collaboration and staff and student mobility, post-Brexit.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomasz Kubin

The exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union (so-called Brexit) is one of the most important events in the process of European integration. It has a lot of extremely remarkable implications – both for the EU and for the United Kingdom. Among other, Brexit will affect the security of the United Kingdom and the EU. The aim of the study is to answer the research question: how will Britain’s exit from the EU influence the EU common security and defence policy? In order to answer this question, the factors that are most relevant to the United Kingdom’s significance for the EU’s security and defence policy will be identified. This will show how the EU’s potential of the security and defence policy will change, when the UK leaves this organisation. The most important conclusions are included in the summary.


Author(s):  
Radovan Malachta

The paper follows up on the arguments introduced in the author’s article Mutual Trust as a Way to an Unconditional Automatic Recognition of Foreign Judgments. This paper, titled Mutual Trust between the Member States of the European Union and the United Kingdom after Brexit: Overview discusses, whether there has been a loss of mutual trust between the European Union and the United Kingdom after Brexit. The UK, similarly to EU Member States, has been entrusted with the area of recognition and enforcement of judgements thus far. Should the Member States decrease the level of mutual trust in relation to the UK only because the UK ceased to be part of the EU after 47 years? Practically overnight, more precisely, the day after the transitional period, should the Member States trust the UK less in the light of legislative changes? The article also outlines general possibilities that the UK has regarding which international convention it may accede to. Instead of going into depth, the article presents a basic overview. However, this does not prevent the article to answer, in addition to the questions asked above, how a choice of access to an international convention could affect the level of mutual trust between the UK and EU Member States.


Author(s):  
Kristina Salibová

My contribution deals with the issue concerning the question arising on the applicable law in and after the transition period set in the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community. The aim of this contribution is to analyze how the English and European laws simultaneously influence one another. This analyzation will lead to the prognosis of the impact Brexit will have on the applicable English law before English courts and the courts of the states of the European Union. The main key question is the role of lex fori in English law. Will English law tend to return to common law rules post-Brexit, and prefer the lex fori?


2021 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 155-164
Author(s):  
Richard Barnes

Abstract On 30 September 2020, the United Kingdom and Norway signed the Framework Agreement on Fisheries that will provide the basis for future cooperation in the sustainable management of their fisheries. The Agreement is the first such agreement adopted by the UK following its decision to the leave the European Union. This note provides some background to the Agreement and examines its key features. Whilst the content of the Agreement appears to be rather basic, this is broadly consistent with other framework agreements, and it does provide some insight into the direction and focus of fisheries management in the North Sea, and how cooperation may develop between coastal States and the European Union.


Author(s):  
Penn Bob ◽  
Forzani Alex ◽  
Allen & Overy LLP

This chapter summarizes and discusses the UK regulatory framework for recognized investment exchanges (RIEs) and recognized clearing houses (RCHs) under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA). It considers the framework in light of the current and forthcoming European legislation. It also examines the applicability of the framework to RIEs and RCHs in the context of the recast Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II), European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) and the UK's departure from the European Union (Brexit). This chapter outlines the central role of exchanges and clearing houses in the operation of financial markets. It explains that the exchanges offer marketplaces for the trading of financial instruments, provide market data which facilitates trading, and establish standards for the offering of securities, while clearing houses manage the performance of financial contracts between the point of execution and final settlement and mitigating the risk and consequences of default.


Author(s):  
Federico Fabbrini

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the Withdrawal Agreement of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). The Withdrawal Agreement, adopted on the basis of Article 50 Treaty on European Union (TEU), spells out the terms and conditions of the UK departure from the EU, including ground-breaking solutions to deal with the thorniest issues which emerged in the context of the withdrawal negotiations. Admittedly, the Withdrawal Agreement is only a part of the Brexit deal. The Agreement, in fact, is accompanied by a connected political declaration, which outlines the framework of future EU–UK relations. The chapter then offers a chronological summary of the process that led to the adoption of the Withdrawal Agreement, describing the crucial stages in the Brexit process — from the negotiations to the conclusion of a draft agreement and its rejection, to the extension and the participation of the UK to European Parliament (EP) elections, to the change of UK government and the ensuing constitutional crisis, to the new negotiations with the conclusion of a revised agreement, new extension, and new UK elections eventually leading to the departure of the UK from the EU.


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