Assessing the EU (1)

Question 1

What is the EU?

Answer 1

A number of ‘liberal’ democratic countries, acting collectively through an institutionalised system of decision making

Question 2

Why was the EU created?

Answer 2

Because after the end of WW2 Europe was divided between the east and west. In order to deal with a divided Germany and recovering western Europe, the Schuman Plan (1950) was formed

Question 3

Who created the Schuman Plan and what did it propose?

Answer 3

Jean Monnet (a senior French civil servant) - planned to integrate French and West German coal/steel production under a single supranational authority. This means an international entity would operate above member states and control this key resource (coal/steel community).

Question 4

When was the European Coal and Steel Community formed and between who?

Answer 4

1952 - France, West Germany, the Benelux Countries and Italy

Question 5

When was the Treaty of Rome signed and what did it establish?

Answer 5

March 1957 - the European Economic Community (EEC)

Question 6

When was the Empty Chair Crisis and what happened?

Answer 6

1965 - France refused to take its seat

Question 7

What was the solution to the Empty Chair Crisis?

Answer 7

The Luxembourg Compromise - member states will seek unanimity, where possible, in decision making. Balance moves towards more intergovernmental

Question 8

When did the Berlin Wall fall?

Answer 8

1989

Question 9

When was the Maastricht Treaty and what did it establish?

Answer 9

1993 - the EU

Question 10

When was the Treaty of Lisbon signed?

Answer 10

2007

Question 11

Which 3 pillars were combined to create the EU?

Answer 11

• The European Community - Responsible for the internal market and immigration asylum. Make decisions in a supranational style (different governments)
• Common foreign and security policy - Responsible for positions on foreign policy and the preservation of peace. Make decisions in an intergovernmental style
• Justice and Home Affairs - Responsible for cross border crime and criminal cooperation. Make decisions in an intergovernmental style

Question 12

When was the Treaty of Constitutional Treaty signed and what happened to it?

Answer 12

2004 - was eventually abandoned

Question 13

Which 3 basic elements did the Constitutional Treaty endorse?

Answer 13

• Institutional Reform (e.g. more legislative powers for parliament)
• Charter of fundamental rights (designated the treaty as a constitution and gave the union a single legal personality)
• Consolidation of existing treaties

Question 14

What is intergovernmentalism?

Answer 14

The process or condition whereby decisions are reached by specifically defined cooperation between or among governments

Question 15

What is a multi level government?

Answer 15

A system in which power is shared between the supranational, national and subnational levels. There is significant interaction and coordination of political actors across those levels

Question 16

Define supranationalism

Answer 16

Above states or nations; processes or institutions that are largely independent of national governments

Question 17

What are the 3 main themes regarding the distinctive features of the EU?

Answer 17

• An experiment in motion, an ongoing process without a clear end state
• A system of shared power characterised by growing complexity and an increasing number of players
• An organisation with an expanding scope but limited capacity

Question 18

What does the experimentation and change theme argue?

Answer 18

The EU has developed from a free trade area to a single market to an economic and monetary union. The EU has suffered a rocky evolution that hasn’t been smooth since the beginning (e.g. Failed attempts of the 1950s to the creation of a Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and a Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in the 1990s).

Question 19

What does the power sharing and consensus theme argue?

Answer 19

Power is dispersed across a range of actors and layers of government. The three most important sets of actors are:

• The member states - some want deeper integration whilst others do not
• The EU institutions - have shaped the development of the EU as they vie for power with the member states as well as amongst themselves
• Organised interests - representatives of sub-national levels of governance, private interests and citizen groups play an increasing role

Question 20

What does the scope and capacity theme argue?

Answer 20

The EU has vastly increased from 6 states to 27. The Sovereign Debt Crisis led to the EU becoming more deeply involved in national budgets.

The EU attempts to dispose of its image as a political giant and is trying to stamp its authority on the international scene through its leadership on issues such as climate change.