Ways of Considering EC/EU Political History

1. Ways of Considering EC/EU Political History • A Movement • Driven and Shaped by European Nations • Inspired and initiated by Key Personalities and their supporters and constituencies • Landmark Actions and Achievements • Examples: Treaty of Rome, SEA, Maastricht • Examples: CAP, Internal Market, EURO, Enlargement • Landmark Crises • Examples: “Empty Chair,” the Budget, Maastricht Referendum • Building New/New Kind of Institutions • Their Powers and Relationships with one another • Their Role, as “Community Actors,” in shaping EC/EU

2. Ways of Considering EC/EU Political History (cont’d) • Political parties, popular reactions at home • Multiple contexts • Cold War/ end of Cold War politics and diplomacy • Foreign policy of individual countries, both towards Europe and beyond Europe • Dramatic internal political transformations • Democratic regimes in Southern Europe (Greece, Spain, Portugal) • Germany • Eastern Europe • New political issues within established EC/EU countries • Immigration • Challenges to welfare state policy • National identity: emergence of populist extreme right parties

3. Political History of European Integration • Issues • Nation-State Sovereignty and Its Abdication • Enlargement • “Democratic Deficit” • Institutions • Community Budget, “own resources” • National Interests and Deal-Making • Dynamics of Institutions • The Three Pillars

4. The Story of Politics • Pre-Treaty of Rome • European Defense Community (1952-1954) • First Stage of Cooperation (1958-68) • The Issue of Sovereignty • Charles de Gaulle, the “Empty Chair,” the Luxembourg Compromise (1965-66) • Unanimity (the Veto) vs. Qualified Majority • The Issue of Britain • The First Major “Deal”: CAP

5. The Story of Politics (cont’d-1) • Politics Amidst “Eurosclerosis” (1973-84) • Enlargements • Britain, Ireland, Denmark (1973) • Greece (1981) • Democratic Deficit • European Parliament Direct Election (1979) • Crisis over the Budget (1979-84) • Margaret Thatcher: aggressive, abrasive approach • Renegotiating the British contribution, the “rebate”

6. The Story of Politics (cont’d-2) • Renewal (1985-1992) • The Commissions of Jacques Delors • 1985-88, 1989-92, 1993-94 • Breakthrough: White Paper on “Completing the Internal Market” (1985) • Lord Arthur Cockfield, Commissioner for Internal Market and Financial Institutions (DG3) • 279 concrete measures • Deadline of 31 December 1992 • Single European Act (1986) • Amend Treaty of Rome • Qualified Majority Voting (QMV)

7. The Story of Politics (cont’d-3) • Renewal (1985-1992) [cont’d] • Delors Committee/ Delors Report (1989) • Committee of Central Bank governors • Monetary Union • Two Intergovernmental Conferences (IGCs) in 1990-91 (parallel, at the same time) • First IGC: Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) • Second IGC: Political Union • Reform of Institutions • Treaty of Maastricht (signed 1992)

8. The Story of Politics (cont’d-4) • Context of Renewal • Margaret Thatcher rallies to Single Market Europe • Enlargement: Spain and Portugal (1986) • Fall of Berlin Wall (1989) • Mitterrand and Kohl: German re-unification • Drama of Maastricht Referendums (1992-1993)

9. The Story of Politics (cont’d-5) • Big Steps Towards Unified Europe • Economic and Monetary Union • 3 stages of 1990’s • European Central Bank (Frankfurt) • EURO by March 2002 • Enlargement (1995) • Scandinavia: Sweden and Finland, not Norway • Austria

10. The Story of Politics (cont’d-6) • Big Steps (cont’d) • IGCs and Treaties to Strengthen Maastricht • Treaty of Amsterdam (IGC 1996-97, treaty signed 1997, treaty ratified by 1999) • Treaty of Nice (IGC 1999-2000, signed 2000) • European citizenship • Living within the “Three Pillars” • Growing importance of Justice and Home Affairs

11. The Story of Politics (cont’d-7) • History in the Making Today • Massive Enlargement: Copenhagen Summit (2002) • European Convention (December 2001-) • A Constitution for Europe? • A European presidency? • Intergovernmentals vs. Federalists • National Interests and Deals • France and Germany • Big Countries, Small Countries • Valery Giscard d’Estaing (former president of France) is president/chair of the Convention • Decision in hands of IGC

12. The Story of Institutions • Key Original Institutions: What are they? • The Council (Council of Ministers) of the EU • The Commission and its President • The European Parliament • The European Court of Justice • Key Innovations • The European Council (of Heads of State) • Unofficial origins (in 1974) and status • Presidency overlaps with that of the Council • Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) • European Central Bank • European Court of Auditors

13. The Story of Institutions (cont’d-1) • Institutions on a Lesser yet Important Scale • Economic and Social Committee • Committee of the Regions (innovation)

14. The Story of Institutions (cont’d-2) • Actions • High level • Treaties and treaty amendments • Prepared and negotiated by IGC • Major initiative and direction • European Council, summits • Regular (legislation) • Regulation, directive, decision • Recommendation, opinion • Testing, refinement, innovation of legislation • Court of Justice

15. The Story of Institutions (cont’d-3) • The Commission • Membership and selection • President: Walter Hallstein, Jacques Delors • Location: Brussels (Belgium) • Subunits: DGs • Role: EC/EU as “one” • Trade negotiations within GATT/ WTO • Example: Delegation of the European Commission to the United States

16. The Story of Institutions (cont’d-4) • The Council • Member States • Rotating presidency (every 6 months) • COREPER • QMV and “federalism”

17. The Story of Institutions (cont’d-5) • The Parliament • Growing importance and role since 1979 • Locus of “democratic deficit” concerns • Organization by party rather than country • Key powers: • Budget • Approval of the Commission • Co-decision (theory and reality) • Commission and Parliament • Terms of Office coincide • EU image to the public: two “extremes”

18. The Three Pillars • First Pillar: “the European Community” • Economics at the core • Extensive federalism (eg, QMV for Internal Market) • Second Pillar: “Common Foreign and Security Policy” • “Pure” intergovernmental • Third Pillar: “Justice and Home Affairs” • Key growth area (immigration, drugs, terrorism) • Intergovernmental but spreading federalism

19. The Continuing Debate • Supranationalism: the “Federalism” Ideal • Progressive transference of sovereignty from national to “Community” level • Key supranational developments: • QMV • Economic and Monetary Union • Issue: control of national economic policy, especially in recession economy • Focus today: the interest rate, rules on budget deficits and national debt • Court decisions on internal market matters • Institutional embodiments • Commission • Parliament • Court of Justice

20. The Continuing Debate (cont’d) • Intergovernmentalism: “Europe of Nations” Ideal • Focus of Member State independence • Key domains: • Foreign policy, security and defense • Criminal law and related legal “home affairs” • National budget (fiscal policy) • Welfare state institutions and policies • Institutional embodiments • The two Councils (Ministers, Heads of State) • IGC concept • Subsidiarity: a Theoretical Compromise