Introduction to the EU/ Law-Making in the EU Flashcards
What two key concepts are covered by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)?
Policies and competences.
What two key concepts are covered by the Treaty on the European Union (TEU)?
‘Constitutional’ elements and external (intergovernmental) polices.
Which article of TEU spells out the objectives of the EU in 2014?
Article 3
What does Article 3(2) TEU aim for?
- The Union shall offer its citizens an area of freedom, security and justice without internal frontiers…
- …in which the free movement of persons is ensured (in conjunction with appropriate measures in respect of external border controls etc.)
What does Article 3(3) TEU aim for?
That the Union shall establish an internal market (but goes further…very broad provision).
According to Van Middelaar, what are the three distinct ‘narratives’ or ‘paradigms’ of the EU?
- Europe of States (intergovernmentalism)
- Europe of Citizens (constitutionalism)
- Europe of Offices (neo-functionalism)
What are the advantages of the narrative of a Europe of Citizens?
Lends intellectual support to the idea that Europe is a post-national democratic space for the articulation of citizen interests.
What are the disadvantages of the narrative of a Europe of Citizens?
Questionable as to whether there is, at present, a common European identity, or indeed whether it is necessary.
What quoted is featured by Habermas and Derrida in the text book?
“[The] differing evaluation of politics and markets may explain Europeans’ trust in the civilising power of the state, and their expectations for it to correct market failures.”
What is one way the text book views Europe?
That Europe is seen as a place where there are multiple political communities with a shared way of life.
Is there a certain level of backlash against opponents of integration?
Arguably yes. Due to a perceived intolerance of things ‘non-European’, and the view that the integration process is an emphasised form of enlightened co-operation between nations, this can lead to the assumption that opponents can be dismissed as nationalistic (i.e. un-European).
What role did WWII have in forming the EU?
Provided a stimulus for those who saw the EU as the only means both to prevent war breaking out between nation states and as a means to respond to increased economic competition from abroad.
Is the EU a mimic of the nation state, or an alternative to it?
Arguably both. It has both replicated the symbols and tools of nationhood at a pan-European level; and tries to create a model of political community which is post-national.
What is C. Bickerton’s view of the EU?
Something which allows national governments to distance themselves from their citizens, and can impose different policies by saying they are both necessary and externally required.
Can you name a good quote from C. Bickerton?
“The state-society relationship is thus reconfigured… a presumed relationship of representation is replaced by one of insulation and separation.”:
Can our own narrative about national identity shape our ideas of the EU?
Yes. It can shape our understanding of what the EU means. Individuals that are proud to be part of a political community as opposed to seeing it as a constraint are often those most engaged by the ideal of the EU.
How was the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights brought about?
A special Convention was established to agree the Charter. Constituted a move away from negotiations between governments to a new form of deliberative decision-making.
What did the Draft Constitutional Treaty seek to achieve and how?
Was concerned to establish the Union as an autonomous constitutional democracy.
(1) Union instruments would be known as ‘laws’ or ‘framework laws.’
(2) Primacy clause asserting the precedence of EU law over national law within the limits of the Treaty.
(3) Bill of Rights of sorts was established with the incorporation of the EUCFR into the Treaty.
(4) The Union would have its own legal personality and Foreign Minister.
Why was it optimistic that the DCT could create a common European identity?
The generation of national common identities has the reinforcement of a national system of law and order, common myths and symbols, a national welfare system, economy and administration. Could a convention in Brussels replicate this?
How was the process of reaching on the Lisbon Treaty different to that of the Constitutional Treaty?
‘Political agreement’ on the central points of disagreement was reached in confidential negotiations between ministries, and only then was the second stage, an IGC, opened.
Name an important reform the Lisbon Treaty implemented.
Replacement of the three pillar structure with a single framework, extending supranational disciplines to many activities, most notably policing and judicial cooperation in criminal matters.
What does the TFEU set out to do?
Sets out the explicit competencies of the Union and the detailed procedures to be used in each policy field.
What is a ‘brake’ procedure?
A national government could insist that a Union matter be discussed at European Council level if a measure touched fundamental aspects of their social security or criminal justice systems.
What is differentiated integration?
In some areas, such as policing and judicial cooperation in criminal justice, states can choose whether to participate in individual pieces of legislation prior to their adoption.
