Brexit - Between the Ideology of Euroscepticism and the 'Innocence' of the Treaty on European Union

Abstract

Built on the values of freedom and prosperity, democracy and peace, the European Union has created over time a huge constitutional framework, culminating in the Lisbon Treaty, adopted in 2007 and known as the Treaty on European Union. It reflected the will of the then 27 Member States to live together in a cohesive society, guided by the principle of subsidiarity, and to offer neighboring countries the opportunity to join the Union. As regards EU enlargement, the procedure was laid down in principle in Article 49 TEU; for reasons of symmetry, the Treaty introduced Article 50 to cover the possible scenario of a Member State leaving the Union. Although no one expected it, Article 50 TEU was activated by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland following a referendum on the so-called Brexit in the summer of 2016. At the beginning of 2020, after lengthy negotiations, the British - Eurosceptics who had made a discordant note for 43 years in the implementation of common policies - effectively left the EU, hoping for a better life and leaving us to reflect on the "innocence" of a treaty article drafted from too much democracy.