Janice Morphet - How Europe Shapes British Public Policy

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Janice Morphet has had a career in local and central government as an academic and a consultant. She has degrees in sociology, management, politics and literature. Her career started as a planner in London then moved to work in regeneration and project management. Janices interest in the UKs membership of the EU and its interrelationship with British public policy developed while she was responsible for services that were opened to competition. This was extended through widening interest and application of sustainability in local government, when she was part of a small group of advisers representing British local government within wider European local government organisations. She has since been the chief executive of a unitary authority and a local government adviser in central government.

In 1994, I attended a reception in the European Parliament on the evening before the first meeting of the Committee of the Regions. As part of the support to the UK local government delegation, there was a hopeful feeling among our group. Local government had been through a difficult time since Thatcher became Prime Minister in 1979, and although she had gone, there was still a sense that local government was undervalued and fighting to fulfil its role. The Committee of the Regions was a new affirmation of the role of sub-national government, which might help to change this position in the UK. The reception room was crowded with all the other delegations and there was a good buzz of conversation in the air. After about 30 minutes or so conversing in our group, I looked around to find that the UK delegation was the only one left in the room. All the others had disappeared. Where had they gone? Had we overlooked some other event? On enquiring, I found that all of the other delegations had agreed to have joint pre-meetings and briefings over dinner. They had planned to meet up with old friends and to make new alliances. No one had asked the British delegation to join them and we were insufficiently experienced in working in Brussels to make our own arrangements to do this. This was a timely reminder of the way the UK operated and how separate we were.