4.3 the aims, role and impact of the European Union on the UK government. Flashcards
1
Q
the aims of the EU
Schuman Declartion 1950
A
french foreign secretary Robert Schuman proposed France and Germany pool their production of coal and steel over one supranational authority, with other west european states free to join
- in theory by removing coal and steel production from national control, war between members of the ECSC (european coal and steel community) would be impossible
2
Q
the aims of the EU
Treaty of Rome 1957
A
establishd the European Economic Committee
- the ECSC provided the basis for it
3
Q
the aims of the EU
what does pooling soveriegnty mean for power according to the EEC
A
- member states would achieve greater political influenceb y sharing power within a much larger political organisation
4
Q
the aims of the EU
2025 member states vs 1957
A
2025: 27 member states
1957: 6 member states
5
Q
the aims of the EU
how does the EU protect its members?
A
- intergovernmental organs of governance protecting the sovreignty of members in certain key areas suc has foreign policy, taxation, and defence
6
Q
the aims of the EU
aims of the EU
A
- intergration
- expansion
both of which are to encourage peace, prosperity, and liberal democracy across europe, banishing the prosepct of war by eliminating national differences and jealousies.
7
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1985 Schengen Agreement
A
estbalishes the principle of passport-free travel across most member states of the EU
8
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1986 Single European Act
A
commits the EEC to the creation of a single internal market
9
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1973
A
UK, Ireland, Denmark join
10
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1981
A
Greece joins
11
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1986
A
spain and portugal join
12
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1993 Maastricht Treaty
A
establishes the EU with a common citizenship
- commits members to pursuing a common foreign and security policy and launches plans for a single european currency
13
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
1999 Amsterdam Treaty
A
incorporates the Schengen agreement (omitting the Uk and Ireland) and Social Champter into EU law
14
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
2002 Euro
A
european currency is launched into circulation
15
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
2003 Nice Treaty
A
further reduces occasions when member states can use their national veto by increasing opportunities for qualified majority voting
16
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
2009 Lisbon treaty
A
provides the EU with its own diplomatic corps and creates the positions of a full time EU president and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to give the EU the potential for greater international influence
17
Q
the enlargement of the EEC/EU
2004
A
Malta, Cyprus, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary join
18
Q
the four freedoms
definition
A
the free movement of:
1. goods
2. services
3. capital
4. people
19
Q
the four freedoms
what did the four freedoms envisage?
A
- a european single market
20
Q
the four freedoms
the free movement of goods?
A
- member states should not impose tariffs on goods from another member state
- this creates a customs union
21
Q
the four freedoms
the free movement of services?
A
buisinesses should be able to open and operate in any member state
22
Q
the four freedoms
the free movement of capital?
A
- capital should be able to move freely throughout member states
23
Q
the four freedoms
the free movement of people?
A
-no internal barriers should stop citizens of the EU working in any member state and being able to claim the same social benefits
24
Q
the four freedoms
what was the thinking behind the four freedoms?
A
- by eliminating national barriers, the countries would be so interconnected war would be unthinkable
25
# monetary union
what is the monetary union?
- established european intergration would aspire to both economic and monetary union
- **2002** the founding member states of the eurozone physically replaced their existing currencies with the euro
- also established the European Central Bank in Frankfurt
26
# monetary union
by **2022** there were how many member states in the eurozone?
| (as part of the Maastricht Treaty **1993**)
- 19 EU member states
27
# social unity
what did the Social Chapter (as part of the Maastricht Treaty) include?
- rights that all workers in the EU can claim such as:
1. health and safety
2. freedom from discrimination
3. equal treatment
4. paid holidays
5. working hours and conditions
6. parental leave on the birth of a child
28
# the protection of human rights
**2000** Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
| (ratified in the **2009** Lisbon treaty)
- significantly overlaps with the European Convention of Human Rights
- but the charter only applies to areas connected with EU law and is applied through the european court of justice
29
# political union
Since the Single European Act **1986**: all other EU treaties have limited...? what did this advance? what else did it establish?
- the ocasions on which nation states can exercise the veto in the european council
- this advances european intergration
- also established common EU citizenship
30
# common foreign and defence policy
the Maastricht Treaty **1993** and the Lisbon Treaty **2009**: what did it commit member states to?
- common foreign and defence policy
- Lisbon proivded the EU with legal identiy so it can negotiate on equal terms with nation states and an EU diplomatic service
- Lisbon also established a full time President of the European council and a High Commissioner for Foreign affairs and security policy: both of whom represent the EU in its dealings with other world leaders
31
# Has the EU achieved its objectives?
Yes: expansion of members
- **2022**: EU had expanded from 6-27 members
32
# has the eu achieved its objectives
yes: democracy? ECFR?
- encouraged democracy in states that were previously communist
- european charter for fundamental rights has established civil liberties in european law
33
# has the eu achieved its objectives
yes: what does the implementation of the four freedoms mean?
- the EU is now the biggest single market in the world, providing EU citizens with the right to live, work, or study in any member state
34
# has the EU achieved its objectives?
yes: **2022** the EUs GDP was worth what? currency?
- $17.9 trillion
- making it the second biggest economy in the world
also the Euro is the worlds second reserve currency
35
# has the eu achieved its objectives
yes: global lead on important issues and international relations?
- the EU is a global lead on combating climate change and has been responsible for the most environmentally friendly legislation in the world
- when russia invaded Ukraine in feb **2022** the EU agreed the strongest sanctions in its history and committed significant military support for Ukraine
36
# has the eu achieved its objectives
No: expansion? sanctions on Russia?
- expansion has diluted its purpose making it harder to achieve unification
- despite placing significant sanctions on Russia, they could not agree whether to completely ban Russian oil and gas
37
# has the eu achieved its objectives
no: commitment to democracy
- hungary and poland's commitment to democratic principle of the EU is disrupted
38
# has the eu achieved its objectives
no: austerity programmes
- ...demanded by the European Commission and European Central Bank in response to the euro crisis have undermined support for theEU in south European countries
39
# has the eu achieved its objectives
no: migrant crisis
- exposed significant trensions between the liberal approach of german/french governments and the more defensive approach of states such as Hungary/Italy
40
# has the eu achieved its objectives
no: common sense of identity?
- little progress has been made in establishing a european sense of identity
- national identities have been strengthened because of austerity, the free movement of workers and the migrant crisis
41
# the institutions of the EU
european commission (supranational): how does it work? what is it responsible for?
## Footnote
-
- the executive of the EU
- each member sends a commissioner, who represents the interests of the EU to its hq in brussels
- responsible for developing and ensuring EU policy is carried out
42
# the institutions of the EU
council of the european union (intergovernmental/supranational): what does it do?
- legislative bodies of the EU
- they decide whether to implement proposals from the commission
43
# institutions of the EU
european council (intergovernmental): what does it do?
- meet 4 time a year
- develops EU foreign policy and makes strategic decisions concerning the future of the EU
44
# institutions of the EU
european parliament (supranational): what does it do?
- direclty elected
- shares legislative and budgetary control with the council of the EU
- commission is accountable to parliament and parliament elects the president of the commission
45
# institutions of the eu
european central bank (supranational) what does it do?
- implements EU economic policy and sets a common interest rate for the members of the eurozone
46
# institutions of the EU
european court of justice (supranational) what does it do?
- ensures european law is applied equally and interpreted in the same way in all member states
47
# the impact of the EU on the United Kingdom
supporters vs critics argued...
- **supporters**: positive social/economic impact of membership
- **critics**: it undermined demoocratic accountability, threatened Britains independence and created another layer of bureaucracy
48
# benefits for the uk
trade: duty free access? tarriffs? exporters and consumers?
| + **2016** example
- duty free access to the worlds second biggest economy
- tarriffs reduced trade
- uk exporters could sell abroad cheaply
- consumers got cheaper EU imports
| **Eg. 2016** 43% of British trade was worth £241b
49
# benefits for the UK
EU immigration? how much did they claim in benefits vs tax paid?
- **2013-2014**: non British EU citizens padi £14.7b but claimed just £2.6 in tax and child benefit
50
# benefits for the UK
jobs as a result of trade: how many relied on it? net benefit to the UK economy?
- 3m relied on trade with the EU
- the Confederation of British Industry estimated during the EU referendum, that the net benefit to the UK economy was worth beween 4%-5%
51
# benefits for the UK
how did the four freedoms benefit the UK?
- British entrepeneurs could setup buisiness anywhere in the EU
- students could study freely
- elderly could retire to an EU country adn still recieve British pensions
52
# benefits for the UK
EUs Erasmus programme
| how many took advantage?
- encouraged educational exchanges across the EU
- up to 200,000 british students took advantage of this study in EU countries
53
# benefits for the UK
social chapter of the Maastricht Treaty provides what?
| Working Time Detective.
- important safeguards to workers rights
- such as the Working Time Detective - guaranteeing a max 48 hour working week working year
54
# benefits for the UK
European Charter of Fundamental Rights
- part of EU law in Treaty of Lisbon
- this meant exercising European law, the british government had to act according to the charter, protecting workers rights
55
# benefits for the UK
the UKs shared values with the EU
- able to assert shared values such as democracy, human rights, the rule of law
56
# benefits for the UK
liberal democracy and the EU
- the worlds most advanced example of a liberal approach to global politics, bringing together independent nation stated into a union
- EU has enoucraged peace and stability across member states since **1957**
57
# arguments against membership of the EU
power?
- challenged parliamentary sovereignty
- as a result of the pooled soveriegnty in the EU, parliament lost its right to legislate on behalf of the British people
**Eg.** Thatchers censorship of the film *Spycatcher* was unlawful?
58
# arguments against membership of the EU
democratic deficit in the EU?
- the European Commission (the EUs government) is not directly elected
- the european parliament, which is the only elected body, doesn't have much direct influence.
59
# arguments against membership of the EU
unneccessary law? implementation of European law £££?
- unneccessary and may not serve the interests of a countrys citizens
- Open Europe think tank believes implementation of the EU regulations cost £33b every year
60
# arguments against membership of the EU
The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
- 38% of the EUs budget **2014-2020**
- protected the livelihood of EU farmers by subsidising production and protecting them from outside non-EU competition
- the UK has a tiny agricultural base, so benefitted little.
61
# arguments against membership of the EU
critics of the CAP also argue what about free market principles?
- as a member of the EU, the UK had to subsidise a protectionist scheme, discriminatting against the developing world and going against free market principles
62
# arguments against membership of the EU
UK trade with EU
| declining?
- decreasing
- **2006**: 54% of UK trade was with EU
- **2016**: 43%
63
# arguments against membership of the EU
UK net contribution to the EU
- £8.9b in **2017**
- this is more than it got back
- the UK recieved regional grants in poorer areas such as Cornwall and South Wales, but it was still a net contributor
64
# arguments against membership of the EU
the four freedoms: what was the reality?
- rather than encouraging european identity, it encourages xenophobic resentment, especially among poorer voters who gained the least from EU immigration
65
# the EU referendum **2016**
resentment against the EEC **1970s/80s** then now?
- labour saw its membership of the EEC as a barrier to socialism in the **1970s and 1980s**
- more recently, a large section of the conservative has focused on the loss of national identity and threat to soveriegnty.
66
# the EU referendum **2016**
why was the UK not committed?
- joined 16 years after the Treaty of Rome (when the EU was established) so had to accept already existing policies
- Britains imperial legacy made it less pressing
- the UK fostered a seperate British identity, not being conquered by either Napoleon or Hitler
67
# the EU referendum **2016**
what was the consensus over EU membership when Cameron pledged to hold the referendum?
- it was widely expected the UK would remain
- most of teh cabinet and the PM campaigned to do so, along with Labour, Lib Dems, the CBI and the TUC arguing in favour of economic advantages
68
# the EU referendum **2016**
what did George Osborne say about Brexit and economics?
- brexit would push the UK into an immediate recession costing 820,000 jobs in 2 years
69
# the EU referendum **2016**
why was the leave campaign more influential?
- unlike **1975**, strong economic arguments proved less influential
- the Leave campaign focused on restorign british soveriegnty whcih was more popular
70
# the EU referendum **2016**
result
- remain: **48%**
- leave: **52%**
71
# the EU referendum **2016**
debate over the EU and economic benefits
- the UK enjoyed considerable economic benefits from membership of the EUs single market
- the free-flow trade, services, capital and workers represented 4 freedoms benefitted the UKs economy, the consequences of Brexit on the economy are highly controversial.
72
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
soveriegnty?
- four freedoms no longer applicable
- (although EU withdrawal legislation enshrined in UK law all existing EU legislation)
- UK can negotiate its own trade deals and control its borders
- parliament entirely sovereign
73
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
conflict with EU members over territorial issues
- **2021**: UK governement sent 2 warships to Jersey when French fishing boats threatened a blockade over post-withdrwawal disputing fishing rights
74
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
constitutional complications and exposed unresolved tensions
- **Eg.** Boris Johnson removed the whip from **21** pro-european conservative MP s
- just 4 of them returned to parliament in the **2019** election
- the conservative party has transformed into a eurosceptic party
75
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
Brexit and executive authority?
- expanded it
- in response to parliament's unwillingness to agree to an early general election in **2019**
- Johnsons government enacted legislation restoring the PMs right to determine the date of a G.E
- Brexit has also meant clashes in the *Gina Miller* cases.
76
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
undermined the integrity of the UK? votes across the nation: England, Wales, but Scotland and Northern Ireland?
- England: **53.4%** (leave)
- Wales: **52.5%** (leave)
- Scotland: **62%** (remain)
- Northern Ireland: **55.8%** (remain)
this has boosted pro-europeanism in Scotland through the SNP
77
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
collapse of the Northern Irish Government in **2022**
Northern Ireland Protocol: enabled the free-flow of goods across the Irish border, which remains in the EU
- checks on EU goods would then have to be carried out on goods coming from NI to GB
- this has been viewed by the unionists in NI as threatening its membership of the UK
- the DUP government withdrew from power-sharing as a result, leading to the collapse of the NI government in **2022**
78
# the impact of Brexit on the UK
how has the EU disrupted the UK constitution?
- relationship between various parts of the UK has been disrupted
- labour ahs committed to dramatic rebalancing of power in the UK
- involving devolution, and the house of lords being replaced by an elected Assembly of Regions and Nations.
