The Post-War Development in Historical Perspective

Abstract

Before embarking upon a closer study of the contrasting development of Britain and the Six since 1950, we would be well advised to look at our problem in a longer perspective. It is always dangerous to select an arbitrary base year and to make international comparisons from that point onwards; for it may well be that the explanation of the diverging trends observed in this way lies in the history of the period preceding the base year. While one must not be overcautious in this respect — the logical outcome of an extreme caution would be to rule out all comparisons — it will be wise to attempt some pre-war comparisons between the United Kingdom and the E.E.G. countries and to examine critically the implication of the choice of 1950 as a base year.