Lecture 3 - Jan.10th.pdf

History, Part 3 Maastricht Treaty Common market incompatible with multiple national currencies Problem High transaction costs linked to currency conversion and uncertainties linked to exchange-rate fluctuations Stage 1 1990-1993, free movement of capital Stage 2 1994-1998, convergence of member state econ. policies and strengthen of cooperation between national central banks Stage 3 1999, euro launched Coins and notes since 2002 Idea that even with a common currency, countries can devalue it Budgetary rules with penalties (but ineffective) e.g. Germany and France violated the rules themselves Stability criteria to the euro Opt-outs for UK and Denmark (and de facto Sweden) Reviewing the EU: the 1996 IGC Considerations Prepare institutions for massive enlargement (East europ. countries) Bring the EU closer to its citizens Revise the pillar structure Need to simplify it Facilitate cooperation amongst willing states Treaty of Amsterdam, 1997 Key policy area changes Revised pillar structure: free movement of persons delegated to EU Created area of Freedom, Security and Justice (UK, Ireland, and Denmark opt-out) Common border control unit Key rules on non-discrimination Incorporation of Schengen agreement No internal border control Increased social policy competencies Renewed commitment to common defence Established mechanism for closer cooperation Any policy area not decided at the euro level, some european countries could go ahead without the agreement of other countries "2-speed" Europe Pillar structure Pillar I European Communities EC, EURATOM, EAEC Pillar II Common foreign and security policy Pillar III Police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters PJCCM No common decision making mode Largely failed Size of Commission - 1 commissioner per member state Too many people Definition of qualified majority in Council Extension of majority voting to new policy areas Enlargement moves centre-stage New IGC to resolve so-called "Amsterdam leftover" Treaty of Nice 2001 Preparation for future enlargement Extension of QMV, but reaching a QMV did not become easier 70% voting majority Decreased Commission size To be done over time Increased maximum Parliament size to 732 MEPS Very large Parliament Prepared for incorporation of "young democracies" Call for "a deeper and wider debate about the future of the EU" "Future of Europe" debate Multiple treaty revisions in the 1990s with modest success EC decides on major overhaul with broader participation than IGC How can the EU be made more democratic, transparent, and effective To achieve that, the EC decided to institute a new body --> Convention on the Future of Europe European Council --> Convention --> IGC --> Ratification European Convention 105 members Member state govts + candidate countries Reps of national parliaments Reps of European parliament Reps of European Commission Key themes of debate How to achieve more transparency, democracy, and efficiency? Towards a European Federation? A European Constitution? What happened Heterogenous composition, more extreme than an IGC Possible outcomes: no agreement or inconsistent document Strong