Sunningdale and the Common Market
Ireland became a member of the EEC on 1 January 1973. The step followed the accession treaty signed in Brussels in January 1972 and the Irish referendum of May 1972, in which an overwhelming majority had approved entry. Membership did not instantly transform farms, factories or family budgets. It did, however, alter the framework within which Irish governments, businesses and farmers would make decisions. Ireland now participated directly in a Community enlarged from six to nine states, while Britain’s simultaneous entry mattered especially because Irish trade had long been tied closely to the British market.