Paper 2- The European Union

List some aims of the European union:

• Further promotion of human rights and democracy

• Ensure peace across the EU

• Achieve peace beyond its borders

How successful has the EUs aim of ensuring peace across the EU been and why?

Quite successful as the EU has enjoyed an unprecedented period of peace.

How successful has the EU been at achieving peace beyond its borders?

The EU has not achieved success in this because the EU lacks a military.

How successful has the EU been at early promotion of principles of liberal democracy?

This has been successful as by requiring all member states to adopt the principles of liberal democracy and the European Convention of Human Rights, the EU has helped to establish its values across Europe.

What are the council ministers composed of?

Government ministers who are responsible for a ministry.

How does the council of ministers work?

• The EU meet in public when they discuss or vote on draft legislative acts.

• To be passed, decisions require a qualified majority of 55% of countries, representing at least 65% of the total EU population.

• To block a decision, at least four countries are needed.

What are the roles of the Council of Ministers?

-Exercise legislative and budgetary functions.

-Carry out policy-making and coordinating functions.

-Give advice to the PM.

-Adopt EU laws.

Why was the Council of Ministers established?

established under the treaty of Rome in 1957, created to enable decision making to remain in the hands of ministers elected democratically in their home state.

What are the four freedoms of the single market (the single market was established in the Maastricht Treaty on the basis of the four freedoms)?

• Free movement of goods.

• Free movement of services.

• Free movement of people.

• Free movement of capital.

What does free movement of goods mean?

It means that goods produced in one part of the EU can be freely sold in other parts of the EU, as long as they meet the agreed standards.

What does free movement of services mean?

It means that financial services can be offered by any company in one part of the EU to another company in the EU without additional rules.

What does free movement of people mean?

It means that a citizen of one state is entitled to equal treatment in another member state. This means that citizens can travel, work and reside in any part of the EU without the need for a visa or work permit.

What does free movement of capital mean?

This removes any restrictions on financial investment from one part of the EU to another and allows money to move freely across the EU, with no fees or limits on buying currency.

List some positive impacts of the single market fredoms:

• It has created an estimated 3-4 million additional jobs across the EU and allowed GDP across the EU and its member states to increase.

• Membership of the single market has helped the former communist states develop into modern economies and establish a strong economic base.

List some negative impacts of the single market freedoms:

• The free movement of people proved controversial, with many UK citizens using unregulated EU migrants as a key reason for voting to leave the EU.

• EU nationals travelled to the UK to receive free healthcare.

• The migrant crisis has put the free market in danger.

List some measures taken in attempts to combat the shortcomings of the single market:

• The single market emergency instrument- creates a crisis management framework to identify and respond to threats to the single market.

• The internal market emergency and resilience act, which focuses on crisis preparedness and resilience.

When did the single market come into force?

1st January 1993

When was the European common market created?

1957

What was the aim of the Common Market?

To give Europe a new boost, to have more integration, and have free movement.

When was the Common External Tariff created?

1968

What did the Common External Tariff do?

Remove custom duties

What was the Single Market a response to?

A long standing crisis after the oil crisis.

When was the Single European Act?

1986

What did the Single European Act do?

Remove internal barriers, so it further established freedom of movement.

What was created in 1992?

The European Monetary Union.

What was the European Monetary Union a response to?

The fall of the Berlin Wall

List the institutions of the EU:

• The European Commission

• The Council of Ministers

• The European Council

• The European Court of Justice

What is the European Commission?

It is the civil service of the EU. It is staffed by non-elected officials. Their main role is to develop and propose policies that will further the aims of the EU, to draft European legislation and organise the implementation of EU policies.

What is the European council?

They are the heads of government of member states, and they meet to form this council. They ratify important decisions and occasionally agree new treaties.

What is the European Court of Justice?

The court is the highest court of appeal. It deals with the disputes between member states, interprets EU law when it is disputed and can punish states that disobey EU law.

Define ‘Exclusive Competencies’

Areas of policy that only the EU can make policy on.

Define ‘Shared Competencies’

In these policy areas the EU has priority, but if it chooses not to make laws or regulations in these policy areas then a member state can if it chooses.

Define ‘Supporting Competencies’

These are policy areas in which the EU may only coordinate or support the actions and decisions of member states; it cannot make policy decisions itself.

Define ‘Exclusive Member-State Competencies’

These are the policy areas in which the EU can play no role.

List some key EU policies:

The Commons Fisheries Policy

The Common Agricultural Policy

The Immigration Policy

What did the Commons Fisheries Policy do and why was it controversial?

It means that you can only fish a certain amount of fish per year. It was controversial because people may earn less money due to this policy.

What did the Common Agricultural Policy do and why was it controversial?

It helps to ensure consistency of food production in the EU. It can be controversial as it brings concerns regarding wasted food.

What did the Immigration Policy do and why was it Controversial?

It is based of the free movement of people, and it means that everyone should be treated as an equal person in any EU country.

What are the impacts of EU policies on the UK?

The development of the EU has seen many policies implemented in the UK. Many may appear uncontroversial, such as the requirements surrounding food labelling and animal welfare rules, but others have had a more profound effect that have alienated sections of society from the EU.

What is legal sovereignty?

It means that political power can only be exercised if Parliament explicitly grants that power to a body.

What is political sovereignty?

It relates to what the sovereign body can actually do in the face of public opinion and circumstances beyond its control.

What constitutional changes do the people have sovereignty over?

Devolution, the electoral system, the independence of Scotland and membership of the EU.

Who/what is sovereign when human rights and civil liberties need to be defined?

The Supreme Court.

Who is sovereign when determining who shall form the government?

The PM

Why does the fact that key strategic decisions concerning the constitution are now being made by a referendum suggest that sovereignty is meaningless? Give an example of this in action.

Because it means that the public is sovereign. The fact that Parliament must ratify the result of a referendum because it is legally sovereign doesn’t matter. Realistically Parliament will never overturn a referendum outcome.

The 2016 referendum gave people sovereignty because choosing to leave the EU was a direct expression of the will of the people.

Why does devolution mean that sovereignty is meaningless? Give an example of this in action.

Because devolution means that real power over key areas now lies with devolved bodies.

Scotland has its own Parliament and government with powers over areas like education, health, environment and justice.

It can be argued that by winning a general election, the UK government has been granted Sovereignty to implement its manifesto. Why dies this suggest that sovereignty is meaningless? Give an example of this in action.

Because it means that the fact that Parliament can veto legislation is not relevant as it is a rare event.

2024 general election- Labour won by a landslide. Winning an election gives the party an electoral mandate to exercise their manifesto.

Arguments to remain in the EU:

• The EU is history’s most successful peace project.

• We have a better chance of stopping climate change while we are in the EU.

• Freedom and democracy are at the heart of the EU.

• The EU has made travel accessible to a wider public.

• Lower prices in shops.

Arguments to leave the EU:

• Leaving the EU would create more jobs.

• Being more financially independent.

• Restrict migrants.

• The EU costs us 350 million euros a week and we have no control over how it is spent.

What are the political aims of the EU?

• Establish an internal market.

• Establish an economic and monetary union.

• Offer freedom across boarders.

• Regulate immigration.

What are the social aims of the EU?

• Combat social exclusion and discrimination.

• Protect and improve the quality of the environment.

• Promote peace.

• Promote social justice and equality between men and women.

positive impacts of the EU economic policies:

• The euro was established in 1999 and most of the EU now uses the euro. It helped to speed up and standardise transactions across the eurozone.

• Free movement of goods.

• Rise of GDP

• Creates jobs

negative impacts of the EUs economic policies:

The financial crisis of 2008 means that the economy was put under pressure as wealthier states in norther Europe had to ‘bail out’ economies in the south. This caused tension.

Monetary union has come at the cost of less national sovereignty.

Loss of monetary policy.

What were the two key events that lead to the creation of the single market and the expansion of the EU?

The 1973 oil crisis and The Fall of The Berlin Wall 1989

What were the economic consequences of the oil crisis?

• Increase in oil prices.

• Many oil-producing countries began to diversify their economies to reduce dependence on oil reserves.

• Nationalization of oil industries

What were the political consequences of the oil crisis?

• The spike in oil prices caused inflation.

• Many countries established strategic petroleum reserves to mitigate the impact of future oil supply.

• There was a shift in foreign policy.

What was the cause of the fall of the Berlin wall?

It was a result of years of political and social unrest in Est Germany.

How did the fall of the Berlin wall influence the political landscape in Germany and the rest of Europe?

Because it lead to Germany’s leadership in the EU and NATO enlargement.