Transcript The European Union (EU)

The European Union (EU)
What is it?
• The European Union (EU) is a family of democratic
European countries, committed to working together
for peace and prosperity.
• It is not a State intended to replace existing states, but it
does represent a greater compromise of sovereignty
than any other international organization.
• The EU is unique; its Member States have set up
common institutions to which they delegate some of their
sovereignty so that decisions on specific matters of joint
interest can be made democratically at European level.
• This pooling of sovereignty is also called "European
integration"
Background…
post WWII governments.
West Germany
• By the 1950’s, West Germany had
evolved into a stable two-party democracy
[Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and
Social Democratic Party (SPD)].
• Konrad Adenauer (CDU) (Chancellor:
1949-1967) led W. Germany towards
closer ties with the US and the other W.
European nations.
West Germany, continued
Following the death of Adenauer, Willy
Brandt (SPD) took over and began a
process called Ostpolitik, which meant he
tried to open diplomatic contacts and with
Eastern Europe.
Brandt formally recognized E. Germany
and accepted the post-war settlements in
the east, thus easing tensions with the
USSR, Poland and Czechoslovakia.
Post-war Italy
Following WWII, Italy adopted a new
constitution which brought the Italian
monarchy to an end and created a
democratic republic (which still is there
today).
Two major parties dominated the new
government: the communists (because they
had been anti-fascist during the war) and the
Christian Democratic Party.
Italy remained in the W. European bloc.
Post-war France
The 4th French Republic was formed after
WWII, but it was plagued by the frequent
changes in government ministries and by
factionalism.
France had many small parties and so they all
had to rely on multi-party coalitions to
implement their policies.
Women in France voted in parliamentary
elections for the first time in 1946.
Fifth French Republic
Using the Algerian crisis as a pretext,
DeGaulle created the 5th French Republic
in 1958, giving the French President much
more power.
DeGaulle used his power to build an
independent France and to try to make
France somewhat independent of
America.
Economic Recovery in
Western Europe
Marshall Plan aid was used to provide the
financial underpinnings for the post-war
economic recovery and expansion of W.
Europe.
This growth lasted until the economic
downturn of the early 1970’s.
Economic Recovery
For approximately a decade after the war,
worker’s wages failed to keep up with
economic growth.
To offset the potential social problems this
could have caused, most W. European
governments provided social welfare
protection programs for their citizens.
Post-war Great Britain
The British Labor Party tried to direct
national policy toward solving many
problems, such as inadequate housing for
workers, poor safety standards and wages
in industries, and lack of security in
employment.
The Labor Party concentrated on many
issues that had been big problems since
the industrial revolution.
Britain, continued
To avoid social unrest, the government
enacted a variety of reforms.
The British government nationalized the
Bank of England, the railways, the airlines,
and the coal & steel industries.
The government also established old-age
pensions, unemployment insurance,
allowances for child-rearing, and the
National Health Service.
Reforms in Europe
France and West Germany also faced
many of the same social and economic
problems that were found in Britain.
The French communist party was
somewhat powerful after WWII and forced
many socialist reforms.
West Germany also adopted many similar
reforms to bring recovery and stability
after the war.
The Cost of Reform
The economic cost of these social &
economic reforms was long debated.
Because the 1990’s process of globalization often
had a negative effect for the nations of W.
Europe, (with their high wages and very
comprehensive social welfare programs), they
often found it much harder to compete in the
global marketplace.
Under Margaret Thatcher, there was a
significant rollback of the Br. welfare state.
Implementation of
Economic Reforms
1951: Formation of the European Coal &
Steel Community.
Goal: to coordinate the production of coal &
steel and to prevent some of the economic
competition that had served as a cause for
previous 20th century wars.
Economic Reforms,
cont.
1958: Formation of the European
Common Market (now the European
Economic Community--EC)
The EC was established to eliminate custom
duties among the participating nations and to
establish a common tariff on imports from the
rest of the world.
European Union
1991: Members of the European Union
(European Parliament) signed the
Maastrict treaty in 1991 in Maastrict,
Netherlands.
Goal: to establish a common European
currency and a central banking structure by
1999.
The Euro is currently in use in member
nations.
Map 30–1 THE GROWTH OF THE EUROPEAN UNION This map traces the growth of
membership in the European Union from its founding in 1957 through the introduction of
its newest members in 2004. Note that Turkey though having applied for membership has
not yet been admitted.
History of the EU
• The historical roots of
the European Union
lie in the Second
World War.
– Idea of European
integration conceived
to prevent such killing
and destruction from
ever happening again
– First proposed by the
French Foreign
Minister Robert
Schuman in a speech
on May 9, 1950. This
date, the "birthday" of
what is now the EU, is
celebrated annually as
Europe Day
• Phases of growth
– Initially, the European Economic
Community (EEC) consisted of just
six countries: Belgium, Germany,
France, Italy, Luxembourg and the
Netherlands (1958)
– European Communities (EC) (1967)
– Denmark, Ireland and the United
Kingdom joined in 1973
– Greece in 1981
– Spain and Portugal in 1986
– European Union (EU) (after 1992)
(Maastricht Treaty)
– Austria, Finland and Sweden in 1995
– Largest enlargement took place with
10 new countries joining May 9, 2004
Creation of the EU
GROWTH OF THE EU
GROWTH OF THE EU
Admission
of Romania
and
Bulgaria
2007
Croatia and
Macedonia
are new
candidates
Major
debates
about
Turkey
?
CORE
?
CONFIRMATION OF CORE-DOMAIN MODEL
How does it work?
•
There are five EU institutions,
each playing a specific role:
– European Parliament (one of two
legislative bodies in the EU;
elected by the peoples of the
Member States)
– Council of the European Union
(EU’s highest Legislative Body;
has legislative initiative; is made
up of representatives appointed
by member states according to a
population-based allotment)
– European Commission (EU’s
executive body; one
commissioner per country
appointed by each government)
– Court of Justice (ensures
compliance with the EU laws)
– Court of Auditors (manages the
EU budget)
•
These are flanked by five other
important bodies:
– European Economic and Social
Committee (expresses the
opinions of organized civil society
on economic and social issues)
– Committee of the Regions
(expresses the opinions of
regional and local authorities)
– European Central Bank
(responsible for monetary policy
and managing the euro)
– European Ombudsman (deals
with citizens' complaints about
maladministration by any EU
institution or body)
– European Investment Bank
(helps achieve EU objectives by
financing investment projects)
The Euro
• The Treaty of Rome (1957)
– Declared a common market as a European objective
– Aim: increase economic prosperity and contribute to "an ever
closer union among the peoples of Europe"
• The Single European Act (1986) and the Treaty on
European Union (1992) built on this
–
–
–
–
introduced Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)
laid the foundations for a single currency
name “Euro” was selected in 1995
in January 1999, the exchange rates of the participating
currencies were irrevocably set and Euro area Member States
began implementing a common monetary policy
– in January 2002, 12 States in the EU introduced the new euro
banknotes and coins
The Eurozone
•
•
•
•
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•
Coins and banknotes 1st used
Jan 1, 2002
Cyprus sheduled to join in 2008
Slovakia scheduled to join in
2009
Estonia scheduled to join in
2010
Sweden is technically obliged
to join but the EU has made
public that they will not enforce
this with regard to Sweden
Britain and Denmark have a
“derogation” releasing them
from having to join
Why have bills different
sizes & colors?
What values are
reflected in these
“artifacts” that are not
found in American
money?
What about Switzerland?
• Swiss are traditionally suspicious of other countries
• Swiss tradition of neutrality (WWI & WWII)
– self-imposed
– permanent
– armed
• In some ways Switzerland is like the US
– Nationalistic government not interested in ceding sovereignty
– Economic policies are currently designed to protect local
industries (esp. agriculture) from foreign competition
• Initial cost of joining EU (progressive financial
redistribution policy would cost the Swiss)
• Switzerland has embarked on a policy of building
bilateral agreements with the EU rather than joining
outright
Costs of staying out
•
Export problems
– Access to EU markets is not guaranteed
•
Inflation problems
– Europeans nervous about the Euro due to expansion of the EU invest in Swiss
Francs, inflating the value of the currency and inhibiting Swiss exports
•
Capital flight
– High construction costs, expensive labor, and skill shortages already make
investment in Switzerland unattractive
– Several multinational corporations, such as Roche, Sulzer and Alusuisse, have
frozen planned investment projects in Switzerland
– Large Swiss companies, including Nestle, are shifting activities out of Switzerland
in fear of discrimination by other nations
– Already four out of five employees of the top 15 Swiss companies work in other
countries
•
Scientific information lag
– EU scientific exchange programs accept Swiss citizens only if they fail to fill such
exchanges with persons from EU countries
•
Accumulated bilateral agreements and cooperation may create de-facto
incorporation in the EU for Switzerland
The EU in comparative
perspective
US dominates entertainment
industry in Europe
Cultural hegemony?
SUMMARY
• The European Union is the strongest supranational organization in
the world
– shared currency & financial management
– legislative, judicial, and executive bodies
– regulatory and planning bodies
• The EU is growing geographically, and its growth suggests a coredomain model
– core and domain are borne out by distribution of income
• The EU does not appeal to all Europeans (at least not yet)
– small states in particular seem skeptical
• Roughly comparable to the US in some ways
–
–
–
–
population slightly larger than that of the US
somewhat more densely settled than the US
economy is at least as strong as the American economy
other social statistics (e.g. literacy, infant mortality & homicide) are as
good or better than the US