37 min listen
The road to Brexit — 30 years since the Maastricht Treaty
The road to Brexit — 30 years since the Maastricht Treaty
ratings:
Length:
52 minutes
Released:
Mar 18, 2022
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Jack Blanchard speaks to some of the key U.K. players involved in the passage of the Maastricht Treaty and ponders whether this was the moment which set Britain on the path to Brexit.Former British diplomat John Kerr recalls the epic all-night negotiations in Holland, including a session where he hid under a table to offer secret advice to Prime Minister John Major. Treasury Minister Francis Maude tells how he was dispatched to sign the treaty by his then-boss, Chancellor Norman Lamont, who seemingly did not want his own name enshrined upon the document.Rebel MPs Iain Duncan Smith and Bill Cash recall the heated debates in parliament which then followed, with Tory Euroskeptics working hand in glove with opposition Labour MPs led by shadow Europe minister George Robertson, who also appears on the podcast.Former Tory whip Andrew Mitchell recalls the Major government's valiant but ultimately abortive attempts to push the rebel MPs back into line. And Cambridge University's Professor Catherine Barnard explains the wider significance of the Maastricht Treaty and its impact upon Britain, 30 years on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Released:
Mar 18, 2022
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
MPs' postbags: How we're failing the kids who need us most: Jack abandons Westminster politics for a week to hear about the struggles families in Sheffield face to get the support their children need. by Westminster Insider