The United Kingdom defied expectations (and opinion polling) when it re-elected Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron with an overwhelming majority last week. But, take heed, American observers: Cameron's re-election has ramifications far outside of the U.K.'s borders, says Charles Sennott, head of The GroundTruth Project.
That's because one of Cameron's most interesting campaign promises in the event of a strong Conservative victory was an up/down vote on the U.K.'s continued membership in the European Union.
In other words? Britain's days in the E.U. could be numbered.
"You have a sort of 'battle royale' shaping up between conservatives, who are mixed on whether or not to stay in the European Union, but who are fiscally conservative and feel the E.U. is not a great deal for the British economy," Sennott explained.
Skeptics of the European Union worry that strong economies, like the U.K.'s and Germany's, unfairly shoulder the burden of other, less prosperous nations' debts. Sennott points to Greece's ongoing financial crisis—and the looming threat of default—as cause for alarm for conservative Brits.
"If someone down the block, like Greece, is not paying their mortgage and the banks come and foreclose on their property, that weakens your whole neighborhood," Sennott said.
"The U.K. would be the sort of rich mansion at the entrance to that neighborhood," he continued. "They are among the strong economies that wonder: why are we paying into a system when these other countries won't live up to it?"
A vote to leave the E.U. would not be immediate. (Cameron's proposed date is 2017.) But Sennott warns that, with consequences so potentially drastic, the issue deserves to stay on American radars.
"These are pretty fateful plates that are shifting within British politics right now," he said.
To hear more from Charles Sennott, tune in to Boston Public Radio above.
