The conclusion of what is now being called the EU’s Brexit Council and the announcement of an In-Out referendum to be held in the UK later on this year might seem to many Maltese as something which concerns Britain alone and that we Maltese can carry on with our daily lives.

The referendum contest has begun in earnest with the unexpected defection of Boris Johnson and even more with the plunge of the Pound which yesterday dropped to 2009 levels.

From the reactions such as in the interview we carry today with MEPs what emerges is concern that the Maltese who live in the UK must not be negatively impacted by a reduction of their standard of living and right to social assistance.

All this is true but still rather reductive. The game being played in the UK is a game that is vital to Europe as a whole. The issues are far greater than what is in the UK’s interest.

It is a fact that the EU, its policies, its structures, are deeply displeasing to many Europeans. It is true that Europe and the Eurozone have emerged from the crisis of the past years when everybody believed the euro was about to collapse.  But there is no sense of gratitude among European citizens. On the contrary, Eurosceptic parties are on the rise everywhere from France to Spain, from Germany itself to Britain.

Contrary to expectations, Greece did not collapse nor leave the Eurozone. But what Greece did not do, at a terrible cost, Britain looks like it will do. It will be a tough call to carry through a Brexit but it will also affect the rest of Europe especially the UK’s trading partners, such as Malta.

On the one hand, those in favour of a UK exit appeal to national pride, not allowing a supranational organisation like the EU to rule over the UK. This was always there and the British knew what they were going  in for when they had the 1975 referendum. Nor can one say that the EU courts have treated the British badly.

On the other hand, where is the humiliation of the British? Europe created its own single currency but the UK chose to stay out.

Britain wants to limit the flow of foreigners to benefit from the UK’s social security system in a way that is asymmetrical – ie British citizens living in other countries, such as Malta, still expect to benefit from the Maltese social security system.

One still has to see if the deal reached at the Council will hold. There are already for instance rumblings in the European Parliament and there may also be challenges in some courts. More than the voters, it may also be that the issue will at the end be decided by the markets if what happened yesterday is any guide.

For the EU as a whole this is a huge reality check – and it’s about time it happens for the people in the EU are not really consulted about vital issues. They are only asked to elect MEPs. As was evident in the past referenda on the Maastricht Treaty and the like, there is huge scepticism among European voters and this has so far not been really addressed. In the tried and tested EU tradition it is only when things are on the cliff-edge that the EU somehow manages to move.

So far, the EU has lurched from crisis to crisis and somehow managed to pick itself up and move on but there is no guarantee this will happen again. The coming referendum will be a reality check not just as regards the UK but also as regards the EU as a whole.

It will be wise to follow the events with careful scrutiny.