Opting out of the European Union

European integration continues to deepen despite major crises and attempts to take back sovereignty. A growing number of member states are reacting to a more constraining EU by negotiating opt-outs. This book provides the first in-depth account of how opt-outs work in practice. It examines the most controversial cases of differentiated integration: the British and Danish opt-outs from Economic and Monetary Union and European policies on borders, asylum, migration, internal security and justice. Drawing on over one hundred interviews with national representatives and EU officials, the author demonstrates how representatives manage the stigma of opting out, allowing them to influence even politically sensitive areas covered by their opt-outs. Developing a political sociology of European integration, the book shows how everyday negotiations transform national interests into European ideals. It is usually assumed that states opt out to preserve sovereignty, but Adler-Nissen argues that national opt-outs may actually reinforce the integration process. Advance praise: 'This is an excellent book which covers an important and timely topic in an innovative and useful way. I have no doubt that this will be a work of great interest to students of European studies, international theory, and diplomatic studies. It demonstrates the value of incorporating sociological approaches into the study of the increasingly wider and more important spaces which are developing between the insides and the outsides and about which much of IR theory struggles to speak coherently.' Paul Sharp, University of Minnesota, Duluth Advance praise: 'This is a very exciting book. The argument is original and likely to make a splash among both international relations and European Union scholars. It is one of the first and, to this date, the most sophisticated attempt at showing that sovereignty is not only an abstract concept but something that is lived and managed by real social actors, namely diplomats. The author weaves a rich and varied theoretical literature in an elegant, compelling manner. The empirical material is fascinating and the manuscript is well structured and well written. Thanks to an impressive number of in-depth interviews and unique ethnographical work, the book shows how diplomats embody the state and make sense of formal rules in their routine, daily activities.' Frederic Merand, University of Montreal1. Introduction; 2. Disintegrating Europe?; 3. A political sociology of European integration; 4. The stigma of Euro-outsiderness; 5. Through the revolving doors of freedom, justice and security; 6. Late sovereign diplomacy; 7. Conclusion.