 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Are you in favour of joining the European Union and adopting amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
 
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|---|
A referendum took place on 14 September 2003 to decide whether Estonia should join the European Union (EU). Just over two-thirds of voters voted Yes and Estonia joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
Membership of the European Union was one of the main objectives of Estonian foreign policy since independence in 1991. Estonia was invited to begin negotiations to join the EU in 1997 and was formally invited to join at a summit in Copenhagen in December 2002. [1] The Parliament of Estonia then announced that a referendum on membership of the EU would be held in mid September 2003. [2]
The question to be voted on in the referendum was agreed by the Government of Estonia in December 2002. [3] It was:
Are you in favour of the accession to the European Union and passage of the Act on Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia? [4]
Opinion polls in the first half of 2003 showed only lukewarm support for membership. This persuaded leading politicians including President Arnold Rüütel, Prime Minister Juhan Parts and the Speaker of Parliament Ene Ergma to start campaigning hard for a Yes vote. [5]
The economy was one of the main issues used by both sides in the referendum campaign. Supporters of joining the EU said that it would fuel growth and create more jobs, while opponents said that EU entry would slow the growth of the Estonian economy. Opponents also argued that Estonia should not go straight from one union, the Soviet Union, into the EU. [6]
The Yes campaign had strong media, political and financial backing with the Estonian Centre Party being the only leading party against entry into the EU. [5] Posters for the Yes campaign predominated, with one poster handed out by the Res Publica Party calling for Estonians to vote Yes 'for access to millions of sexier men'. [7] [8] As the vote neared, polls showed increasing support for the Yes camp with one poll showing 70% support for EU entry. [9]
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 369,657 | 66.83 | |
| Against | 183,454 | 33.17 | |
| Total | 553,111 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 553,111 | 99.51 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 2,724 | 0.49 | |
| Total votes | 555,835 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 867,714 | 64.06 | |
| Source: EU Referendum 2003 | |||
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek reform, to those who oppose EU membership and see the EU as unreformable. The opposite of Euroscepticism is known as pro-Europeanism.
Scottish independence is the idea of Scotland regaining its independence and once again becoming a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom. The term Scottish independence refers to the political movement that is campaigning to bring it about.
Referendums in the United Kingdom are occasionally held at a national, regional or local level. Historically, national referendums are rare due to the long-standing principle of parliamentary sovereignty. Legally there is no constitutional requirement to hold a national referendum for any purpose or on any issue. However, the UK Parliament is free to legislate through an Act of Parliament for a referendum to be held on any question at any time.
The 1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum, also known variously as the Referendum on the European Community (Common Market), the Common Market referendum and EEC membership referendum, was a non-binding referendum that took place on 5 June 1975 in the United Kingdom (UK) under the provisions of the Referendum Act 1975 to ask the electorate whether the country should continue to remain a member of, or leave, the European Communities (EC) also known at the time as the Common Market — which it had joined as a member state two-and-a-half years earlier on 1 January 1973 under the Conservative government of Edward Heath. The Labour Party's manifesto for the October 1974 general election had promised that the people would decide through the ballot box whether to remain in the EC.
Euroscepticism in the United Kingdom is a continuum of belief ranging from the opposition to certain political policies of the European Union to the complete opposition to the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union. It has been a significant element in the politics of the United Kingdom (UK). A 2009 Eurobarometer survey of EU citizens showed support for membership of the EU was lowest in the United Kingdom, alongside Latvia and Hungary.
In Scotland, the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) is a left-wing political party. The party was formed in 1998 from an alliance of left-wing organisations in Scotland. In 1999, it saw its first MSP returned to Holyrood, with five more MSPs elected in 2003. It lost all MSPs in the 2007 elections and has lacked representation in the Scottish Parliament ever since.
Events from the year 2003 in the European Union.
A referendum on joining the Eurozone was held in Denmark on 28 September 2000. It was rejected by 53.2% of voters with a turnout of 87.6%.
A referendum on European Union membership was held in Latvia on 20 September 2003. Latvia was the last of the states which would join the EU in 2004 to hold a referendum on the issue. Just over two-thirds of voters voted Yes and Latvia joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
The 2003 Lithuanian European Union referendum took place from 10 May to 11 May 2003 to decide whether Lithuania should join the European Union (EU). Over 90% of those who voted supported membership and Lithuania joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
A referendum on European Union membership was held in Malta on 8 March 2003. The result was 54% in favour. The subsequent April 2003 general elections were won by the Nationalist Party, which was in favour of EU membership, the opposition Labour Party having opposed joining. Malta joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
A referendum on joining the European Union was held in Hungary on 12 April 2003. The proposal was approved by 84% of voters, with a voter turnout of 46%. Hungary subsequently joined the EU on 1 May 2004.
Five referendums were held in Switzerland during 2005. The first two were held on 5 June on Switzerland joining the Schengen Area and whether registered partnerships for same-sex couples should be introduced. Both questions were approved. The third was held on 25 September on a federal resolution on extending the agreement on free movement of people to new members of the European Union, and was also approved. The final two were held on 27 November on a popular initiative "for food from an agriculture free of genetic modification" and on a labour law related to the opening times of shops in public transport hubs. Both were approved.
A referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom was held in Scotland on 18 September 2014. The referendum question was "Should Scotland be an independent country?", which voters answered with "Yes" or "No". The "No" side won with 2,001,926 (55.3%) voting against independence and 1,617,989 (44.7%) voting in favour. The turnout of 84.6% was the highest recorded for an election or referendum in the United Kingdom since the January 1910 general election, which was held before the introduction of universal suffrage.
A referendum on the EU accession of the Republic of Croatia was held on 22 January 2012. Croatia finished accession (membership) negotiations on 30 June 2011 and signed the Treaty of Accession on 9 December 2011, setting it on course to become the bloc's 28th member state. The Constitution of Croatia requires that a binding referendum be held on any political union reducing national sovereignty, such as via European Union membership. On 23 December 2011 the Croatian Parliament made a preliminary decision on EU accession and determined that the referendum would be held on 22 January 2012. The 2012 Croatian EU accession referendum was the first referendum held in Croatia since the Croatian independence referendum held more than 20 years earlier, in 1991.
The People's Pledge was a political campaign to secure a referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union. It aimed to achieve this by asking voters to sign a pledge that they would use their vote to help secure a majority of Members of Parliament (MPs) in support of an in-out referendum on EU membership. The 1975 European Communities membership referendum was the last time such a vote had occurred in Britain.
A referendum on the resumption of European Union membership negotiations has been proposed to be held in Iceland. The referendum was suggested after the Independence Party and the Progressive Party formed a coalition government following the April 2013 parliamentary elections. The previous Social Democratic Alliance led government had suspended opening of new chapters within the accession negotiations prior to the election, and the incoming government vowed not to resume them unless they were first given a mandate to do so by a referendum.
A referendum related to the European Union's migrant relocation plans was held in Hungary on 2 October 2016. The referendum was initiated by the government, under the provision of article 8 of the new constitution of 2012. It was commonly referred to as the kvótanépszavazás or kvótareferendum in the Hungarian media.
A second referendum on Scotland becoming independent of the United Kingdom (UK) has been proposed by the Scottish Government. An independence referendum was first held on 18 September 2014, with 55% voting "No" to independence. The Scottish Government stated in its white paper for independence that voting Yes was a "once in a generation opportunity to follow a different path, and choose a new and better direction for our nation". Following the "No" vote, the cross party Smith Commission proposed areas that could be devolved to the Scottish Parliament; this led to the passing of the Scotland Act 2016, formalising new devolved policy areas in time for the 2016 Scottish Parliament election campaign.
Euroscepticism is a minority view in Ireland. Opinion polls held in the country between 2017 and 2024 indicated between 70% and 90% support for continued membership of the European Union (EU), and a 2021 'Eurobarometer' report indicating that 75% of poll respondents had a "positive image of the EU".
