Class notes
Regional Economic Integration
- Course
- Institution
Regional Economic Integration notes, in-depth EU Institutions, History, etc.
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
gelstudent
Content preview
Regional Economic Integration1. History and the Institutions of the EU
Treaties
Treaty of Paris, 1951 Treaty of Rome, 1957
● Established the European Coal and Steel ● Entered into force in 1958
Community (ECSC) ● Established the European Economic
○ Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Community (EEC) for the integration of all
Luxembourg, and the Netherlands aspects of the economy of Member States
● Common market in coal and steel and the creation of a common market
● Its long-term goal was to ensure peace ● Established European Atomic Energy
throughout the continent Community (EURATOM) for cooperation
○ Economic cooperation alleviated on atomic energy for peaceful purposes
tension between France and ○ Promoted commitment to ensure
Germany and lessened the uniform safety standards
likelihood of war in Europe ● Established the four pillars of economic
freedom (Art. 26 TFEU):
○ Free movement of goods
○ Free movement of capital
○ Freedom to establish and provide
services
○ Free movement of persons
Single European Act, 1986 Treaty on European Union, 1992
● Aimed to speed up European economic (Maastricht Treaty)
integration (economic and monetary union, ● Aimed to deepen European integration
economic and social cohesion) and broaden goals regarding the economic
○ Internal market set to be achieved and monetary union
by December 31, 1992 ● Renamed the EEC to the European
● Increased political cooperation between Community (EC) and established the
Member States on foreign policy and European Union (EU), made up of
security matters institutions such as the EC
● Increased legislative powers of the ● Increased legislative powers of the
European Parliament European Parliament
● Qualified majority voting (QMV) became ● Introduced the concept of “EU citizenship”
the norm in Council decision-making, ● Created a three-pillar structure
decreasing the individual influence of 1. the European Communities
Member States 2. the common foreign and security
● Formalized the European Council policy (CFSP)
● Created the legislative cooperation 3. cooperation in justice and home
procedure to amend proposals affairs (JHI)
● Renamed the legislative cooperation
procedure to the "co-decision procedure”
Treaty of Amsterdam, 1997 Treaty of Nice, 2000
● ‘Consolidating treaty’ ● Aimed to facilitate enlargement
○ Improved processes, increased ● Extension of QMV and re-weighting of
effectiveness, and brought the EU votes in the Council
closer to individuals ● Increased use of co-decision procedure
○ Made human rights, democracy, ● Gave the European Parliament the same
and rule of law the heart of the EU prerogatives as the Commission and
○ Removed remaining barriers to free Council regarding judicial review
, movement
● Increased the power of the European
Parliament (increased use of the co-
decision procedure, later renamed the
“ordinary legislative procedure”)
● Made institutional changes to prepare for
enlargement
Treaty of Lisbon, 2009
● Established the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU) (originally the Treaty of Rome) in its latest form (with all recent
amendments).
● These are consolidated versions of EU law (the law applied from the treaties, the result of the
treaties, and all changes and amendments from treaties applied).
Copenhagen Criteria, June 1993 (for EU Enlargement)
Political Criterion Economic Criterion “Acquis” Criterion
Stable institutions that A functioning market economy The ability to take on the
guarantee democracy, the rule and the ability to cope with obligations of membership,
of law, human rights, and competitive pressure and market including the capacity to
respect for and protection of forces within the EU effectively implement the rules,
minorities standards, and policies that
make up the body of EU law
Institutions
European Council
● Composed of 29 members:
○ the heads of state or government of the 27 EU Member States,
○ the President of the European Council,
○ the President of the European Commission
● DOES NOT take part in the legislative process but provides the impetus (“momentum”) for treaty
changes and general political directions
Functions of the European Council
● Provides impetus to developments of the EU (Art.15 TEU)
● Defines general political directions and priorities (Art. 15 TEU)
○ Usually adopts conclusions by consensus (i.e. no voting takes place; a discussion ensues
until no member opposes the adoption)
● Decides the formations of the Council (Art. 236 TFEU)
● Decides the formations of the Presidency of the Council (Art.236 TFEU)
● Elects the President of the European Council and the High Representative
● Role in amending EU treaties via ordinary revision procedure (Art. 48 TEU)
● Can amend Part III TFEU via unanimity (Art. 48 TEU)
● Can extend cases of QMV in the Council (Art. 48 TEU)
● Can extend cases of ordinary legislative procedure (Art. 48 TEU)
● Proposes a President for the Commission
, President of the European Council
● Chairs the meetings of the European Council
● Ensures preparation and continuity of the European Council meetings
● Presents a Report to the European Parliament after each meeting
● Represents the EU externally, often together with the President of the Commission
Council of the European Union
● Composed of Government Ministers who meet in different formations depending on the topic of
discussion (e.g. General Affairs Council, Foreign Affairs Council, Economic Affairs Council )
○ Each Member State has one minister who represents national interests
■ Indirectly, the European Council can influence Council decisions because each
minister can be swayed by the interests of his or her head of state or head of
government.
Functions of the Council
● Legislative (Arts 289 and 294 TFEU)
● Votes on EU Budget
● Takes part in the procedure for the EU to conclude international agreements
● Assisted by the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Governments of the Member
States (COREPER) composed of senior diplomats
○ COREPER makes about 90% of Council decisions
Voting Procedure
● Votes with either a qualified majority (QM), a simple majority, or unanimity, depending on what
the Treaties provide
● The main voting procedure is the QMV, which requires votes from both:
○ The majority of Member States: 55%, comprising at least 15 of them
○ The majority of the population: at least 65%
Presidency of the Council
● Chairs the meetings of the Council
○ The Foreign Affairs Council has a permanent chairperson, the EU High Representative for
Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.
○ All other Council meetings are chaired by the relevant minister of the country holding the
presidency of the Council.
● Represents the Council to the Commission and European Parliament
● Prepares a 6-month work program
● Works in “trios” composed of 3 consequent presidencies
European Commission
● The “most influential” organ of the EU
● 27 commissioners, one from each Member State
○ Each commissioner must, theoretically, be independent of his or her government.
Functions of the Commission (non-exhaustive)
● Proposes legislation
○ The Commission is the only EU institution that can start and end the legislative process.
Other institutions can only make suggestions.
■ The Commission can suggest amendments in cases of disagreement.
■ The Commission can withdraw the proposal.
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller gelstudent. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $13.36. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
53068 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now