Western European Integration in the 1980s: Origins of the Single Market

The Single European Act was formally approved by the European Council in February 1986. When Maastricht hit the headlines in the early 1990s, the Single European Act instantly became history. However, it was the Single Market programme - the main content of the Single European Act - and the years of preparation leading up to it which really gave new momentum to European integration after the Eurosclerosis of the 1970s. The process which led to the Single European Act was never publicly discussed. The architects and initiators of the Single Market have not become household names, however, it is these protagonists and their efforts which are the subject of this book. With information gathered from extensive interviews with key players and EC documentation, the author reviews the forces behind the acceleration of European integration.