
Taking Control
Sovereignty and Democracy After Brexit
Polity Press
1st Edition
Published on 28. April 2023
Book
Hardback
240 pages
978-1-5095-5319-8 (ISBN)
Description
Taking Control argues that neither side in the Brexit debate really understood the European Union or what was involved in reclaiming Britain's sovereignty. The EU is neither a supranational nanny state, nor an internationalist peace project. It is the means by which Europe's elites transformed their own states in order to rule the void where representative politics used to be. Leaving the EU is a necessary but not sufficient step towards closing the chasm between rulers and ruled.
This book makes the democratic case for national sovereignty, arguing for a radical, forward-looking reconstitution of the British nation-state through strengthening representative democracy. It is essential for anyone who wonders why British politics is so dysfunctional and who wants to do better.
This book makes the democratic case for national sovereignty, arguing for a radical, forward-looking reconstitution of the British nation-state through strengthening representative democracy. It is essential for anyone who wonders why British politics is so dysfunctional and who wants to do better.
Reviews / Votes
"This is the most important book to come out of the struggles over Britain's membership of the EU, and it makes all other works on the subject look trivial. The authors provide a profound analysis of the issues involved, and show how only thorough-going changes in Britain's political and constitutional arrangements will be able to respond to the challenges of this near-revolutionary moment."-Richard Tuck, Professor of Government Theory, University of Harvard
"This book forcefully argues that Brexit was no more than the first step in a long process of rebuilding a democratic nation-state, indeed a democratic nation, out of the ruins of a politics without national sovereignty. Sovereign democracy requires effective institutions of civic representation that disempower a political elite content with ruling the void. This book is a breakthrough for democratic theory and a milestone for political debates on the future of democracy."
-Wolfgang Streeck, Emeritus Director, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, Cologne, Germany
"A crucial book for understanding the Brexit paradox: why it failed catastrophically to deliver on its promise to re-democratise British politics, but why it remains a necessary precondition for achieving just that."
-Thomas Fazi, Co-author Reclaiming the State and The Covid Consensus
"The condition of post-Brexit Britain is grim. This excellent book shows that this has little to do with having lost the putative benefits of EU membership. Far more important is the British state's steady incapacitation and the decay of neoliberal political parties. The promise of 'taking control' remains, but only if Britain undergoes a democratic and social transformation."
-Costas Lapavitsas, Professor of Economics, SOAS London
"A worthy contribution to our understanding of the EU, and to attempts to escape it."
-Morning Star
"Their critiques of the UK political establishment are trenchant and their proposals are far reaching... the wider message is important."
-Times Literary Supplement
"Brilliant."
-Matthew Goodwin, author of Values, Voice and Virtue
"[A]n urgent corrective of many of the left's misconceptions about Brexit"
-Sublation
"Eloquent and emphatic... an arresting prospectus for a new departure in UK politics."
-New Left Review
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Publishing group
John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 218 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5095-5319-8 (9781509553198)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
04/2023
1st Edition
Wiley
€16.99
Available for download

Cunliffe
Taking Control: Sovereignty and Democracy After Br exit
Sovereignty and Democracy After Brexit
Book
04/2023
1st Edition
Polity Press
€20.00
Shipment within 15-20 days
Persons
Philip Cunliffe is Associate Professor in International Relations at University College London.
George Hoare is an independent researcher and co-host of the Bungacast podcast.
Lee Jones is Professor of Political Economy and International Relations at Queen Mary University of London.
Peter Ramsay is Professor of Law at the London School of Economics.
The authors write about politics at thenorthernstar.online.
George Hoare is an independent researcher and co-host of the Bungacast podcast.
Lee Jones is Professor of Political Economy and International Relations at Queen Mary University of London.
Peter Ramsay is Professor of Law at the London School of Economics.
The authors write about politics at thenorthernstar.online.
Author
University College London
Bungacast podcast
Queen Mary University of London
London School of Economics Law School
Content
Preface
Introduction
1 From Nation-States to Member-States
2 Voiding National Sovereignty
3 The Vote
4 Leaving the EU, Remaining in the Void
5 Constituting the Nation
6 Taking Control: Towards a Democratic Britain
References
Index
Introduction
1 From Nation-States to Member-States
2 Voiding National Sovereignty
3 The Vote
4 Leaving the EU, Remaining in the Void
5 Constituting the Nation
6 Taking Control: Towards a Democratic Britain
References
Index