Guidance on the EU in GCE Politics (updated June 2021) 1
Pearson Edexcel GCE Politics
Guidance on the scope of the EU and its application in the
GCE Politics specifications (June 2021 update)
Pre-amble
This document is not to be regarded in any sense a forecast of how the EU will be examined.
It serves to emphasise and re-enforce the continuing applicability, relevance and connection
of the EU to the AS and A level Politics specifications.
Why is the EU in the specifications given that the UK left in January 2020 and a trade
deal was agreed and ratified by the EU Parliament in spring 2021?
The DfE included the EU as part of the defined subject content in the new GCE AS and
A level Politics specifications. At the time the specifications were being created, the June
2016 referendum, in which the UK voted to leave the EU, had not yet taken place. The DfE
made it clear post-referendum that it did not wish to delete the EU from the defined content.
Specifications can and do change with time, and it is possible that content will be reviewed in
the light of events. However, it is not within the gift of any awarding body unilaterally to add
or remove elements of defined subject content in any specification. If the specifications are
reviewed this will be with DfE and Ofqual involvement and subsequent approval. Any
changes will be communicated well in advance to all centres. Until this arises (and it may not)
we are required to adhere to the content as established in the original specifications.
Where is the EU is explicitly mentioned in the GCE Politics specifications?
The EU appears in the A level specification and AS specification in Component 2
UK Government (9PL0/02 and 8PL0/02) sections 1.1 and 4.3. It also features in the A level
specification in Component 3 Global Politics (9PL0/3B) section 5.
• UK Government section 1.1 refers to The European Communities Act 1972 and also
European Union law which has become part of the UK’s constitution.
• UK Government section 4.3 includes details of the aims, role and impact of the EU
on UK government. This section has the most comprehensive and explicit reference to
the EU. This covers the ‘four freedoms’, the role of the EU in policy making, and
finally the impact of EU polices on the UK political system.
• Global Politics section 5 is titled Regionalism and the EU and includes sections on
European integration and the significance of the EU as a global actor.
