The crisis of the Eurozone has had a significant impact on the politics of Europe. In many countries, the euro was largely interpreted by elites as a development that would ameliorate their nations’ problems. However, recent events have proven the contrary, with the rise of radical right-wing politics and populism across the continent.

This book investigates the politics of the euro, with a primary focus on Italy, but also with additional chapters on the UK and Germany. Using a range of original and secondary data, it reconstructs how the euro was interpreted by both elites and non-elites from the late nineties to 2010. By recruiting a large sample of non-elites, it examines perceptions of the euro and the ways in which these views allowed for the justification of painful austerity measures required to enter the Economic and Monetary Union. In doing so, it sheds light on the ways in which non-elites interpret complex political objects like the euro and provides a systemic comparison of the cognitive schema of non-elites and elites.

This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of the European Union, European politics, Italian politics, comparative politics and political economy.