The LSE Commission on the Future of Britain in Europe aimed to inform the national debate on Britain’s membership of the European Union, with high quality, evidence-based and balanced analysis.
Its purpose was to meet the public need for reliable information in the run-up to the national referendum.
The work of the Commission concentrated on a series of expert hearings convened by LSE academics. Participants included senior British and EU public officials, policy practitioners, academics, think tanks, journalists and business representatives.
The hearings examined “negotiation issues”, the options for a reconfigured UK-EU relationship and the wider impact of a Brexit on the UK, as well as on the EU as a whole.
The convenors’ reports of their individual hearings contributed to a final report setting out an overall assessment of the case for continued British EU membership or a Brexit. You can read a summary of the report here and each report here.
The Commission was coordinated by Professor Iain Begg of the LSE European Institute.
Join the discussion on the Future of Britain in Europe on Twitter using: #LSEBrexit
Posts by Commission participants
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Compared to its neighbours, open migration to Britain has been a success story
Eastern European migration to the UK is deplored by many Britons. Yet, argues Adrian Favell, comparing Britain's experience with that of other member states shows just ...more
Having a voice in Brussels from outside the EU: the lessons of EEA-EFTA
If Britain were to leave the EU, yet seek somehow to remain a part of the Single Market, the EFTA countries would watch with interest. This ...more
The EU doesn't weaken UK parliamentary democracy as much as Leavers have you believe
For many advocates of a Brexit, the principle of 'returning powers to Westminster' is sacrosanct. They point out that parliamentary debate subjects legislation to proper domestic ...more
Britain needs the EU much more than vice versa
Britain and the EU need each other, but Britain needs the EU more than vice versa, argues Holger Schmieding, writing in response to the session ...more
Fundamental rights and fundamental fears
What would Brexit mean for the protection of fundamental rights in the UK? This was the subject of the sixth hearing of the LSE Commission ...more
Project unclear: why we don't know what effect Brexit would have on migration
As the UK’s referendum on EU membership approaches, the debate over the pros and cons of leaving has intensified, write the Migration Observatory team at ...more
Nostalgia, xenophobia, anti-neoliberalism: the roots of Leave's nationalism
Nationalism is a key element of the Leave campaigns, says Michael Lloyd. But it takes very different forms on the right and left - and indeed ...more
A British departure would have major consequences for Ireland, both North and South
From an Irish perspective it matters hugely that the UK not only votes to remain in the EU but that it does so after a ...more
Taking the law into our own hands: the perils of a British Bill of Rights
Although leaving the EU would not automatically mean that Britain left the Council of Europe or the European Court of Human Rights, EU regulations would cease to ...more
Project Fear is the legacy of decades of Euroscepticism. Dare Cameron make a positive case for the EU?
It is 14 years since Tony Blair extolled the merits of the EU in his landmark Cardiff speech. Since then, writes Oliver Daddow, Euroscepticism has ...more