The European Union

1. The European Union

2. Presentation Outline • The Creation of the EEC • The Masstricht Treaty • Political Institutions a) EU Parliament b) EU Council c) EU Commission d) EU Court of Justice 4)The Lisbon Treaty 5) EU broadening and deepening 6) Economic and political issues

3. The E.U. comprises 27 states as of 2012

4. 1) The European Economic Community • The E.U. was created in 1957 as the European Economic Community (EEC) by the Treaty of Rome • Only France, W. Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands originally joined

5. Original EEC members in 1957 and evolving EU membership to 2007

6. Mission of the EEC • The EEC was founded by European leaders who wanted to create a common European market, harmonize and encourage trade, and improve economic and political relations of member states • The bitter memories of two world wars provided the motivation for Europeans to cooperate and promote prosperity

7. 2) The Maastricht Treaty • The 1991 Maastricht Treaty established what the EU is today • The EU was now given the authority to act in the following areas: monetary policy, foreign affairs, health, the environment, national security and justice

8. Towards a supranational organization • A supranational organization is defined as one which has power and a degree of sovereignty over member states • Example of supranational organizations include: EU, United Nations, World Bank, World Trade Organization, NATO

9. The EU introduced its currency in 2003 replacing all national currencies except the British Pound, Czech Koruna, and Danish Krone, and Swedish Krona

10. Three E.U. Pillars • 1) Cooperation in trade and economic matters ( common currency) • 2) Cooperation in justice and home affairs (JHA) • 3) Desire to create a Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP)

11. “Four Freedoms” 1) Free movement of labor within the EU 2) Free movement of capital (investment) within the EU 3) Free movement of people within the EU 4) Free movement of goods and services within the EU

12. 3) EU Political Institutions European Parliament (legislative) Council of Ministers (legislative) European Commission (executive) European Court of Justice (judicial)

15. European Parliament • Members of the European Parliament (MEP) are directly elected by national voters in member states in EU elections • Codecision principle means that the Commission and Council must consult with Parliament on legislation • Votes and makes amendments to laws

16. EU elections take place every 5 years using proportional representation

17. EU Parliament in Strasbourg, France

19. The European Council • Composed of the Ministers of national governments (ie. Foreign Affairs, Agriculture Ministers etc.) • 27 appointed members- one for each member state • All EU laws and proposals must be passed by the Council • More powerful than the EU Parliament as it can overturn the decisions of Parliament

20. EU Council

21. All laws passed by the EU Parliament must be approved by the Council. A qualified majority is needed to pass any law:55% of EU Council members (15 states) representing at least 65% of the EU's population must vote in favour of a proposal for it to pass.

22. European Commission • 27 Commissioners in total one for each member state • Appointed by member states • They must be approved by the European Council • Commissioners swear oath of allegiance to the EU • Commission functions as the executive of the EU and supervises the EU bureaucracy • Proposes policy to the EU Parliament

23. The President of the Commission • The Commission elects one Commissioner to be its President • He represents the EU’s interests to world leaders and at major forums and conferences • Portugal’s Jose Manuel Barroso is the current President

24. The EU Court of Justice • Justices (judges) are appointed by member states • Each member state appoints one justice • Justices swear allegiance to the EU and not to national governments • Provides judicial review • All decisions by the court take precedence over national laws

25. Judicial Review in action: • In 1999 the EU Court declared British Beef safe to export to France declaring France’s ban of British beef illegal • In 2008 it ruled that only cheese produced in Italy could be called Parmesan cheese • In 2006 it overruled Italy’s policy of imprisoning illegal immigrants who do not leave the country

26. 4) Lisbon Treaty Key Features • Ratified by all member states in Nov. 2009 • Strengthens the power of the European Parliament in the areas of EU budget, border, and immigration policies • Greater involvement of national govts in the EU • Creation of a permanent full-time EU Council president • Introduction of EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms • Allows member states to withdraw from the EU

27. Scenes from the 2009 Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty

31. 5) EU Broadening and Deepening • EU Broadening means adding new members states to the EU • All candidate members must be approved by all EU states – Unanimity principle • And must satisfy three major requirements: 1) must have a functioning and stable democratic regime 2) must have a market-oriented, capitalist economy 3) must accept all current EU laws and regulations

32. Issues and Problems with Broadening • Should Turkey become a member of the EU? • It has recently liberalized its economy • Democracy is still illiberal • Civil and political rights of Kurdish minority are heavily restricted • Should the richer Western European countries be forced to subsidize new poorer members such as Romania, Bulgaria or bailout more Greeces? • How many members is too many?

33. EU Deepening • EU Deepening means adding new powers to the EU, and thus taking away decision making powers from national governments

34. Issues and Problems with Deepening • How much sovereignty are national states willing to give up? • Will member states ever agree on a common foreign policy (many were divided over the U.S. led invasion of Iraq) • Britain, Denmark, Sweden, and the Czech Republic continue to use their own national currency instead of the euro

35. 6)Economic and Political Issues • EU Monetary Policy has been successful • The Euro is one of the strongest and most stable world currencies • EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has not worked well • CAP provided EU subsidies (EU money) to help farmers in member states compete against the world market • Subsidies continue to burden the EU’s budget • Food prices have been on the rise • EU farmers are pressuring their national governments to keep the subsidies

36. Democratic Deficit? • Many Europeans have complained that most of the decision-making is done by high-level Ministers and bureaucrats • The Parliament’s powers are weak • The turn-out for EU elections is much lower than national elections • Many Europeans feel they have little influence over the policies of the EU

37. Continued • National legislatures do not have direct input into the decisions of the Commission • Meetings of the Council of Ministers and the Commissioners are closed to the public.

38. Which state(s) trust the European Central Bank the least?

41. Greek Financial Crisis and bailout Greece was admitted to the eurozone currency in 2003. Greece’s debt has been much higher than the eurozone average and its economy has been much weaker than other EU states

42. The 2009 global recession hit Greece especially hard. The state was near bankrupt, unable to pay its creditors or finance spending and programs. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union agreed in 2009 to lend Greece 240 billion euros to avoid bankruptcy. These loans are conditional on Greece taking austerity measures:cutting spending, and reducing its debt

43. The rich EU member states had to pay for most of the Greek bailout. This add appeared in a German newspaper urging German representatives not to vote to give Greece billions of dollars.