As banks in Cyprus closed to prevent mass withdrawals of cash, a panel of experts from the Sussex European Institute (SEI) discussed the future of Europe at the latest in the Sussex Salon series of debates.

The Sussex Salon is a round-table event, hosted by the Brighton Dome, where academics, practitioners and commentators share their views on hot topics with an audience drawn from the general public.

The panel at the latest European-themed Salon, which took place on Tuesday (19 March), comprised:

• SEI Co-Director and Professor of Law Sue Millns;
• former SEI Co-Director, Emeritus Professor of European Economic Integration and one-time Chief Economist at the Foreign Office, Jim Rollo:
• Sussex alumnus Stephen Booth, now Research Director of the London-based Open Europe think tank,
• and former MP Roger Casale, founder of the New Europeans network aimed at promoting European citizenship.

A wide-ranging question-and-answer session and debate followed brief introductions to the topic from each of the panellists.

The subjects discussed included:

• what the concept of European citizenship entails;
• whether restoring or retaining national currencies is a way out of the euro crisis;
• why European institutions have become so disconnected from the public;
• the costs and benefits of, and possible alternatives to, Britain remaining an EU member.

SEI Co-Director Professor Aleks Szczerbiak, who chaired the event, commented: “Last night’s discussion was an extremely topical one and gave participants a chance to hear some really top-level analysis in a field that has long been one of Sussex’s areas of research expertise.

“The Salon took place as banks in Cyprus closed to prevent mass withdrawals of cash following the overwhelmingly rejection of the latest EU bail-out package by the country’s parliament.

“This illustrated dramatically that the euro zone crisis is not going to go away quickly and European issues will remain in the news headlines for some time to come.

“At the same time, Britain’s future relationship with the EU is certain to move up the political agenda over the next few years.

“I am sure that everyone who came to last night’s debate left better informed and able to make better sense of the major issues and dilemmas that face UK and European citizens and decision makers.”

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