I think one of the larger 'unseen' drivers for the EU for many mainland European citizens is not having absolute confidence in their own democratic structures. I was last in Germany in May 2019 when the whole Brexit shebang was rudderless (Theresa May was about to resign). I was on a course with a mix of different nationalities and there was some incomprehension and bemusement about why it was all happening; however the two most interesting reactions were from a Polish doctor and a Catalonian (in his own eyes definitely not Spanish) who worked in logistics.Psamathe wrote: ↑15 Oct 2021, 11:42am I think some of the underlying issues come from UK attitude to business and wealth and protections of citizens. Much of the UK seems to be all about money, money, money, business, profits, etc.. We tend more to the US "greed is good" attitudes. So for me a lot about the EU is standing up to business and "profit at any cost" and acting to put in place protections for citizens e.g. banning damaging chemicals or e.g. privacy protections. These are less valued by some in the UK so seen as less of a positive and presented as hindrances (for profits for those with more money than they could ever spend).
They both said pretty much the same thing - understanding why the British might want to leave the EU (and the Catalonian was of course admiring of the UK government to put things to referenda - after all the Spanish won't) but they preferred to see the UK stay in the EU - why? - because the UK had a long-term stable democracy they trusted. I know there will be those who snort at that, but look at the progress of almost continuous UK parliamentary democracy compared to most European states and there is a point.
And Germany itself is a case in point, it is strong, democratic and dependable but the Hitlerzeit legacy is still strong, not helped, I suppose, by the fact that a third of the country was still a dictatorship till 1989. The Germans were happy to let the French take the lead in the early days of the European project - but now they can't pretend to be economic equals and Germany is going to have to show more leadership - and not just in their own self-interest.