INTRODUCTION

Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg share a common history of close ties to Britain and pioneering European integration. All three governments went into exile in Britain during the Second World War. It was in London that they sowed the first seeds of European integration, by signing the Benelux monetary agreement of 21 October 1943. A Customs Convention followed in 1944, leading to the creation of the Benelux Union. Later, all three states became founding members of the European Economic Community.

Geographic proximity has meant that the Benelux countries share close political, economic and military links to the United Kingdom. Despite these commonalities, their perspectives on the UK and Europe differ. The Netherlands has a strong Atlanticist tradition and limited appetite for European federalism and is sceptical about Franco-German dominance in Europe. Luxembourg has a continental mindset, however, and favours deeper EU integration. Belgium stands somewhere in between, while also facing a complex domestic political landscape. The level to which Eurosceptic movements play a role in domestic politics also differs among the three.

With sizable financial sectors and large trade and investment flows between Britain and the Benelux countries, there is a lot at stake during the Brexit negotiations. The three countries are among the most exposed to trade disruption from a “hard Brexit”, but they may also attract new post-Brexit business. Politically, Brexit has raised different questions in Brussels, Luxembourg and The Hague about the direction of Europe and European Union reform.

This chapter looks at the way in which the three Benelux countries have approached the British renegotiation, the subsequent referendum debate and the run-up to the Brexit negotiations. Each country section is structured in the same way, exploring the three phases mentioned above. A conclusion follows, outlining commonalities and differences in how they approach Britain’s departure from the EU.

THE NETHERLANDS

“Brexit has created a shockwave, and we don’t yet know exactly what the consequences will be,” Mark Rutte, the prime minister of the Netherlands, declared in response to Britain’s vote to leave the EU (Rutte 2016). The Dutch government was unequivocal: Brexit is bad for business, bad for European politics and bad for the position of the Netherlands in the EU.