Brexit supporters celebrate UK’s departure from the EU on January 31st 2020 / AP
By
24 December 2020
T
he UK’s fractious relationship with Europe has been a running sore in British politics for more than 30 years and has cost four Tory Prime Ministers their jobs.
Margaret Thatcher was ousted in a power struggle over Britain’s future alignment with Brussels in 1990, while John Major’s administration was undermined by endless rebellions by “Eurosceptic” backbenchers over the Maastricht Treaty.
The rise of Nigel Farage’s UK Independence Party as a major political force finally led David Cameron in 2013 to promise a Referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU if the Tories won the 2015 General Election.