Chapter 100- The EU

Question 1

What does supranational mean?

Answer 1

It means that the institutions are only focused on member states

Question 2

What is the Maastricht treaty?

Answer 2

It is an expansion of the free movement of goods people and services and was established in 1992

Question 3

What is the treaty of Amsterdam?

Answer 3

It codified the EU social chapter in 1997

Question 4

What is the European constitution?

Answer 4

It strengthened the role of the European Parliament in 2004

Question 5

What are the European Institutions?

Answer 5

The European Commission
The Council (of ministers)
The European Council
The European Parliament
The European Court of Justice (ECJ)

Question 6

Who is the executive institution of the EU?

Answer 6

The European Commission

Question 7

What are the features of the European Commission?

Answer 7

• It is the executive institution
• It has 28 members (1 from each state)
• It proposes legislation
• It is supranational

Question 8

What are the features of the Council (of ministers)?

Answer 8

• It has 28 ministers from each state
• The minister depends on the issue being discussed
• It is the main decision making body
• Uses QMV (Qualified Majority voting)
• It is intergovernmental

Question 9

What is QMV (Qualified Majority Voting)?

Answer 9

QMV gives member states votes on the basis of population size

Question 10

What does intergovernmental mean?

Answer 10

Cooperation between the EU member states governments without abandoning national interests

Question 11

What are the features of the European council?

Answer 11

• consists of heads of state or foreign secretaries
• It determines the direction of the EU
• It is the EU’s strategic and problem solving body
• It is intergovernmental

Question 12

What are the features of the European Parliament?

Answer 12

• Made up of 751 MEPs who are elected every 5 years
• Scrutinise the European Commission
• Has legislative powers over some areas i.e. the environment

Question 13

What are the features of the European Court of Justice?

Answer 13

• Acts on EU law
• Made up of 28 judges, 1 from each member state
• can strike down domestic laws that conflict with EU law

Question 14

the EU suffers a democratic deficit

Comment on the above statement.

Answer 14

YES

• the power to make policy lies with unelected institutions like The Council
• The only elected and accountable institution (the European Parliament) is too weak
• There is too little known of the EU’s inner workings

NO

• The Council and European Council are made of ministers accountable to their electorate
• All key treaties are ratified by member states through elected representatives
• EU Parliaments role and status is increasing

Question 15

The EU’s central aim consists of the “4 freedoms”. What do these include?

Answer 15

1) Movement of goods
Member states can not impose taxes on goods from other EU states
2) Movement of services
People can offer their professional services across the EU
3) Movement of people
Any citizen of one EU member state can seek employment in another EU member state
4) Movement of capital
Restrictions on capital movements between EU member states have been removed

Question 16

What are the achievements of its aims?

Answer 16

• Single European Market
• Free Movement of people
• abolition of national currency
• EU citizen rights
• EU Charter of Fundamental Human Rights

Question 17

Why is the Single European Market a success?

Answer 17

• It has created 2.5 million jobs

- Increased EU GDP by 15%

Question 18

Why is the Single European market not a success?

Answer 18

• EU regulation is costly for small and medium sized enterprises
• Competitive industry have imposed costs to share wealth

Question 19

Why is the free movement of people a success?

Answer 19

Beneficial migration into the UK from other EU states. 3.2 million EU citizens living in UK

1.2 million UK citizens moved to other EU states

Question 20

Why was the free movement of people not a success?

Answer 20

Eastward migration has left demographic and skills gaps in states like Poland

Question 21

Why was the abolition of national currency a success?

Answer 21

19/28 states joined the European Monetary Union

Question 22

Why was abolition of national currency not a success?

Answer 22

The loss of national control of currency has been seen as the cause of debt crisis and therefore required ECB bailouts

Question 23

Why was the EU citizen rights a success?

Answer 23

EU citizens have the right to vote in EU Parliamentary elections and the right to permanent residence in another EU country

Also workers rights have benefited ie working hours and rights

Question 24

Why was the EU Charter for Fundamental Human Rights a success?

Answer 24

Gave people the right to life, right to freedom and equality and free movement

Question 25

What is an example of EU law being sovereign?

Answer 25

The 1990 Factortame case demonstrates this as it took sovereignty over the UKs Merchant Shipping Act 1988

Question 26

What is an example of Parliament being sovereign over EU law?

Answer 26

Parliament could repeal the European Communities Act for which the 2016 referendum result provided the basis

Question 27

Was Parliament sovereign despite the EU

Answer 27

• Steady accumulation of power in the hands of the executive rendered Parliament ineffective
• Devolution of power, rise of unelected quangos and use of referendum

Question 28

Will Brexit restore national sovereignty?

Answer 28

The UK will no longer have an authority to strike down national law
The agriculture, health and safety and environmental protection will return to UK jurisdiction

Question 29

What institutions in the EU held power in the 1950s?

Answer 29

The Commission

The Council of Ministers

Question 30

Who is Julian king?

Answer 30

The UK Commissioner for the EU