Aims of the EU and their success

Aims of the EU

1. Promote peace

2. Promote equality

3. Fight discrimination

4. Establish an area of freedom without internal borders

5. Establish a single European market

6. Develop cohesion between member states

7. Create monetary and economic union

General achievement of aims - economic, workers’ rights and political union

• EU is one of the most powerful economies due to the single market

• Extension of workers’ rights

• Promotion of increased political union - EU has lots of cooperation and harmony

• The EU and its success continues to grow

Success of political aims - equality, unity and peace

• Equality: All member states have adopted the ECHR and principles of a liberal democracy

• Unity: Provided unity post-fall of the Soviet Union

• Peace: There’s not been any war or conflict within EU states since the creation of the EEC

Failure of political aims - human rights, core values and conflict

• Human rights: States that want to join now are less conscious of human rights and have had issues in their countries

• Core values: There have been challenges to the core values of the EU by some member states

  • Poland and Hungary have passed anti-gay laws

  • Other states have undermined the independence of the judiciary

• Conflict: EU lacks a military so has done little but to impose sanctions when conflicts have occurred outside its borders

Success of economic policies - economic cohesion and monetary union

• Economic cohesion: there are high levels of economic cohesion within the EU

• Monetary union: the Euro (€) has grown over time and facilitated trade

Failure of economic policies - economic crises and monetary union

• Economic crises: 2008 financial crisis and debt crises following

  • Financial crisis meant wealthier northern European states had to help out poorer southern ones, which caused a lot of tension

  • Greece and Spain had debt crises post-2008, showing the problems w/in the EU

• Monetary union: lack of adoption of the € and issues with sovereignty

  • Not all member states use the Euro (UK, Sweden, Denmark)

  • Monetary union undermines national sovereignty

Success of social policies - ECHR

• ECHR has standardised rights

Failure of social policies - rights and tensions

• Rights are not effectively followed in all member states

• Tension has superceded social cohesion

General failures of aims - monetary union, free movement of people, political union and expansion eastwards

• Monetary union: there have been difficulties with the Eurozone

• Free movement of people: controversial, especially with the refugee crisis

  • UK suffered from supposed health tourism with migration from Eastern Europe

• Political union: there has been resistance to increased political union, especially in the UK, with concerns over bureaucracy and democratic deficit

• Expansion eastwards: there have been difficulties with this