Ireland and the Policy of Failure

Abstract

Chapter 4 explores the European Commission’s relations with the Irish government from the breakdown of the Brussels negotiations in January 1963 through to Ireland’s second application for EEC membership in May 1967. The period witnessed a flurry of activity between the Commission and Dublin as Ireland attempted to secure interim trade deals with the six in the absence of Community membership. The chapter examines the role played by the Commission in Dublin’s foreign and economic policy formulation during this period. It sheds new light on the early initiatives taken by the Irish government in the period after the 1963 veto aimed directly at the Commission. The chapter assesses how the Commission responded within the overall enlargement debate, and contrasts these efforts with the way in which other applicants pursued their own European policy. It also highlights the limits of the Commission’s influence over policy areas not bound to the founding treaties.