Metadata
WORK ID: NEFA 22237 (Master Record)
Title | Year | Date |
TODAY AT SIX: EUROPEAN REFERENDUM CAMPAIGN IN NEWCASTLE | 1975 | 1975-01-01 |
Details
Original Format: 16mm Colour: Colour Sound: Sound Duration: 7 mins 20 secs Credits: Tyne Tees Television Genre: TV News Subject: Politics |
Summary A Tyne Tees Television news report transmitted on the 2 June 1975 three days before the United Kingdom European referendum vote on June 5th. The report looks at the local referendum campaign in Newcastle which, the reporter says is being masterminded in this region ‘over cups of tea in tiny temporary offices and homely front rooms – democracy at th ... |
Description
A Tyne Tees Television news report transmitted on the 2 June 1975 three days before the United Kingdom European referendum vote on June 5th. The report looks at the local referendum campaign in Newcastle which, the reporter says is being masterminded in this region ‘over cups of tea in tiny temporary offices and homely front rooms – democracy at the grassroots’. The report features interviews on both side of the debate, ironically, both representatives are members of the Labour Party; Richard...
A Tyne Tees Television news report transmitted on the 2 June 1975 three days before the United Kingdom European referendum vote on June 5th. The report looks at the local referendum campaign in Newcastle which, the reporter says is being masterminded in this region ‘over cups of tea in tiny temporary offices and homely front rooms – democracy at the grassroots’. The report features interviews on both side of the debate, ironically, both representatives are members of the Labour Party; Richard Hoyle, honorary organiser of ‘Keep Britain in Europe’, and Doris Starkey of ‘Get Britain Out’.
The report opens with a shot through a window into a small office in central Newcastle showing Richard Hoyle, a 60 year old Magistrate and Labour Party worker from North Yorkshire, on the phone. In the window a poster reads ‘Vote Yes, Keep Britain in Europe’. Two small ‘Vote Yes’ posters are attached to a door inside the office block. The door opens and inside are shelves stacked with bundles of brown paper packages, booklets and leaflets. A woman comes over, collects some leaflets from the shelves and returns to her desk beside Mr Hoyle who is still on the phone. As he continues to speak into the telephone, she stuffs envelopes with ‘Vote Yes’ posters.
In the front window of a semi-detached house in the leafy suburb of Jesmond, a poster reads ‘EEC Vote No’. Seventy-four year old Mrs Doris Starkey, secretary of the Newcastle City Labour Party and a card carrying Socialist for more than 57 years. She sits at her dining room table typing up a talking points sheet for ‘Get Britain Out’ that is dated March 1975.
Interviews cut back and forth between Mr Hoyle and Mrs Starkey talking about their referendum campaign and how they feel the vote will go. They are also asked about the fact that they are both members of the Labour Party, but are fighting on opposite sides of the debate.
The report ends on general views of Mr Hoyle on the phone in his office and Mrs Starkey typing from her dining room table.
Context
The United Kingdom's relationship with the EU - or, in political parlance, "Europe" - has long been one of the most divisive, emotive issues in British politics. Now it is centre stage again, and the debates between Eurosceptic Nigel Farage and Europhile Nick Clegg bring the argument down to a stark, binary choice not seriously faced in decades - In, or Out.
But why does Europe produce such a polarised reaction? Many Britons, on both sides of the debate, love visiting European...
The United Kingdom's relationship with the EU - or, in political parlance, "Europe" - has long been one of the most divisive, emotive issues in British politics. Now it is centre stage again, and the debates between Eurosceptic Nigel Farage and Europhile Nick Clegg bring the argument down to a stark, binary choice not seriously faced in decades - In, or Out.
But why does Europe produce such a polarised reaction? Many Britons, on both sides of the debate, love visiting European countries and idolise elements of their culture - not least the food. Indeed, more than 1.5 million Britons have moved there to live. But Europeans viewing British newspaper coverage, political debates or opinion polls would be forgiven for thinking we have little but contempt for our neighbours. It is, to say the least, a complex relationship Maybe it is the long history of hostilities that clouds the British view of Europe with suspicion. As an empire builder and major trading power it was inevitable that Britain would come into conflict with rivals vying for the same territories and trade routes. And allegiances shifted. All of its main rivals - Germany in the world wars, Russia in the Cold War, and France through most of modern history - have also at times been important allies. But for many historians the most enduring influence on Britain's self-image is World War Two. And it may be that the popular perception of ‘Britain in its Darkest Hour’, standing alone as the British Empire against Nazi Germany in 1940-41, informs a modern view of the UK as its own best friend. And that if anyone can be relied on to come to her aid, it is the United States. Britain, obviously, is an island nation. Is this the key to its arms-length attitude to Europe? For centuries "we lived in splendid isolation, protected by the Navy and the Empire", the historian Vernon Bogdanor has said. "Now, of course, that period of isolation has long gone, but perhaps it still retains some of its impact upon the British people, who do not want ties with the Continent." But other members of the EU - Ireland, Malta, and Cyprus - are islands, and they do not object so much to handing powers to Brussels. Perhaps it is Britain's island mentality, combined with that imperial hangover, that is at play - Britain is used to giving orders, not taking them. The formation of the European Union had its origins after 1945, in the desire to tie Europe's nations so closely together that they could never again wreak such damage on each other. Winston Churchill fully supported this idea, proposing for Europe "a structure under which it can dwell in peace, in safety and in freedom... a kind of United States of Europe". But as the European Coal and Steel Community was forged in 1951, Britain stood on the sidelines, and it declined an invitation to join the six founding nations of the European Economic Community in signing the Treaty of Rome in 1957. One of the architects of the ECSC, Frenchman Jean Monnet, said: "I never understood why the British did not join. I came to the conclusion that it must have been because it was the price of victory - the illusion that you could maintain what you had, without change." With its own economy stuck in a rut, Britain saw France and Germany posting a strong post-war recovery and forming a powerful alliance, and changed its mind. It applied to join the EEC in 1961, only for entry to be vetoed - twice - by French President Charles de Gaulle. He accused Britain of a "deep-seated hostility" towards European construction, and of being more interested in links with the US. Britain may have had selfish reasons for wanting to sign up, but then seeking mutual benefits is part of the motivation for the European project. As the historian James Ellison points out, Europe has not just been a place of conflict for Britain over the centuries. "It was also a place of diplomatic agreement, trade, co-operation and - through most of the second half of the 20th Century and the 21st - peace and stability and growth," he says. Conservative Prime Minister Edward Heath finally led Britain into the EEC in 1973, after General de Gaulle had left office. When membership was put to a referendum in 1975, it had the support of Britain's three main parties and all its national newspapers. The result was resounding - with more than 67% voting in favour. But that did not end the debate. There was no immediate economic fillip - in fact strikes and power cuts continued, and rising oil prices caused double-digit inflation. In the 1970s, the Conservatives backed British membership - though there was some opposition on the right of the party. The most concerted opposition came from the left of the Labour party, led by Tony Benn and Michael Foot. Mr Foot's 1983 Labour manifesto promised withdrawal from the EEC - by then more commonly called the European Community (EC) - after the pro-Europe wing of the party had split off to form the SDP. "Europe has been a toxic issue in British politics," Professor Bogdanor says, not just because it caused division between parties, "but also deep divisions within the parties". "Some might argue that the fundamental conflict in post-war British politics is not so much between left and right as between those who believe that Britain's future lies with Europe and those who believe it does not." References: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-26515129 https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/cabinetpapers/themes/eec-britains-late-entry.htmhttps://www.historyextra.com/period/modern/britain-decides-the-first-european-referendum/ |