Towards a Kind of European Constitution? From the Saint-Malo Franco-British Meeting to the Lisbon Treaty (1998-2007)
Course material - 6 pages - Modern history
In 1998, Prime Minister Blair had to realize that the fact that GB did not participate in the Euro would actually marginalize her inside the European Union. He decided to recover the initiative, and to take up the subject of European defense, where GB could contribute in an important way, because...
Critically evaluate the institutional reforms enshrined in the Lisbon Treaty
Case study - 5 pages - Political science
Signed in 2007 and entered in force in 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon is in fact the combination of two pieces of legislation. The first one is a new version for the Treaty of the European Union (TEU). The second one is a replacement of the former Treaty of the European...
The Lisbon treaty
Essay - 3 pages - European union
The 27 European leaders reached a deal on the new “Reform Treaty” during a two-day summit at Lisbon on October 18th and 19th 2007, ending more than two years of political crisis after the French and Dutch referenda. This agreement comes after a long and complex process of...
The reasons for the rejection of the Irish by the treaty of Lisbon
Essay - 8 pages - European union
A blow to Europe was delivered on June 12, 2008, with Ireland handing an emphatic "no" to the Lisbon Treaty which had won over 53.4% of voters. Ireland was the only member of the European Union to hold a referendum on this issue. A referendum is a procedure that allows all citizens...
How are competences between the EU and the Member States with the Treaty of Lisbon controlled?
Essay - 4 pages - International relations
The European Union (EU), as we know it today, is the result of decade-long integration efforts, and officially came into being with the Schuman Declaration on 9 May 1950. The process of the European construction has been a lengthy one; the primary goal behind a European entity was to prevent the...
The Treaty of Lisbon: the division of competences between the EU and the Member States
Worksheets - 3 pages - European union
Conceived and founded by Robert Schuman, Europe as a community, has continued to evolve and grow over the years, through the formation of various Treaties. Out of the 6 members present originally in 1957, in 1992, the EEC became the European Union with 12 Member States. Today, in less than 60...
Towards a "Europe-puissance" or towards a free trade zone?
Course material - 8 pages - International relations
The development of the European Union, along the line of constant progress towards more integration, which more or less prevailed since 1950, appeared to stop suddenly in May 2005 with the French "No" to the so-called Constitutional Treaty. That problem has been solved, at least for now,...
Towards a European Defense?
Course material - 7 pages - International relations
The problem of a European defense system is not new: we remember the Brussels Treaty of 1948, which was a military alliance between GB, France and the Benelux countries, including a common European general staff which was stationed in Fontainebleau, until it was taken over by NATO in 1951,...
Future Opportunities, Threats, Challenges and Goals of the European Union
Essay - 4 pages - European union
The European Union is the largest and most successful political and economic union in the world, making it a key player. Research on the European Union focuses mainly on its construction, its functioning, the challenges and threats it faces. Our research aims to examine the responsibilities and...
The Interplay of National and European Considerations in the Foreign Policy of EU Members - France and Germany
Course material - 11 pages - Political science
Since the origins of the European project, Europe has depended on close Franco-German cooperation. As we have seen, all the big moves forward were possible because of the basic Franco-German agreement; the last major instance was Maastricht in 1992. The other countries had to follow. Of course,...
The Limits of the European Model : the Failure of the Federal Dream
Course material - 3 pages - European union
The notion of "solidarité des faits" has always been the core of the EU, and the idea was that an integrated EU would grow step by step, and that it would unite people. However, there was a debate about the final goal of the EU: it should go above the way to what is a federation, but should never...
European Union (EU) Law - Introduction and the different stages of integration
Course material - 8 pages - European law
European construction was imagined by politicians and people centuries ago but was achieved after WWII. In middle age, cities developed trade, and at that moment national markets were created. Traders were moving from a city to another, and these citizens made the rules of mercatoria. The...
The Interplay of National and European Considerations in the Foreign Policy of EU Members - The Countries Other than France and Germany
Course material - 8 pages - Political science
France and Germany alone can no longer call the tune in the EU. They henceforth have to take much more into account the agenda of the other members. We shall see first that agenda, regrouping, of course, the different countries into larger groups along their affinities, and then the possible...
European Union Law - Commentary: Article 4 of the EU Treaty (Member States' sovereignty/cooperation duties)
Thesis - 4 pages - European law
The document we are going to comment on is the article 4 of the EU Treaty, as modified by the Lisbon Treaty. It highlights the fact that the EU membership implies a great number of consequences for the member States. According to this article, although some rights belonging...
The EU Lisbon agenda
Essay - 9 pages - European union
To make the European Union "the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-driven economy, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion ": that was the guideline, the “new strategic goal” of the principles EU's Head of States and Governments...
Explain and discuss the effectiveness of the EC Treaty provisions concerning state aids in preventing distortions to the operation of the single market
Essay - 12 pages - International relations
As recognised by the EC Treaty, state aids are important and necessary policy instruments to achieve social and economic goals. However, depending on the way in which they are given, State aids can have a material impact on competition, leading to significant distortions to the common...
The implementation of the Third Pillar of the European Union in the United Kingdom
Essay - 15 pages - European union
The establishment of the European Union (EU) Policy within the third pillar of the United Kingdom (UK) has changed substantially over the past decades and more with the introduction of the Lisbon Treaty. Originally the UK had been reluctant to acknowledge or embrace European...
Turkish membership to the European Union: what stakes?
Case study - 4 pages - International relations
In the aftermath of the enlargement of the EU and the adoption of the Lisbon treaty, Turkey's adhesion to the European Union is a question which has often arisen since the formal accession negotiations began in 2005. Turkey first applied for associate membership of the European...
EU towards a federal state
Case study - 5 pages - European union
"Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity" (issued from Schuman Declaration on 9th May 1950). At the end of the Second World War, bruised, France, Germany, Benelux, and Italy,...
The High Representative of Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Essay - 5 pages - European union
This paper will examine the new role of The High Representative of Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (‘High Representative') that came into force in 2009 following the Lisbon Treaty signed in 2007. First, the historical background will be discussed followed by the...
What future for Europe?
Essay - 5 pages - European union
Europe ceased to be a concept years ago. It is now a concrete political, economical and social association of 27 states which aim to move on and improve together. Europe currently has a future and will draw it by its own means and will. Yet, Europe is taking her first steps alone. Since the...
Is the European Union's Charter of Fundamental Rights a necessary and desirable development?
Thesis - 7 pages - Constitutional law
The Treaty of Lisbon came into force in 2009 and alongside it, a reference to the Charter of Fundamental Rights (Charter) gave it legal standing. The Charter became one of the most defining documents the European Union has ever witnessed, or a mere piece of symbolic literature that...
Proposals to face the Euro crisis
Thesis - 4 pages - Economy general
During a certain period, the funny abbreviation “PIIGS” was to be found everywhere in the news; this referred to Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain, the five European “sick men”, endangering the survival of the Eurozone itself. While their situation still remains...
French's rejection of the European Constitution
Case study - 5 pages - Educational studies
What is the research question in this article? Several months after the French referendum, Gilles Ivaldi is trying to answer to the question “How can we characterize the disapproval of the French referendum on the European Constitutional Treaty held on 29 May 2005?” The main...
European Union and Federalism
Essay - 4 pages - European union
In 1948, federalists formulated a project of United States of Europe at a Congress in La Haye. But they were defeated by unionists who wanted mere intergovernmental cooperation between European states. Nowadays, this continues to be a recurrent debate: is the European Union (EU) a federal state?...
The European financial crisis and the future of the euro
Essay - 3 pages - European union
Europe has suffered from the recent subprime financial crisis, which has spread through the stock markets in all developed market economies. This crisis will bring these countries to an economic downturn, which will perhaps, allow them to take stock, and hopefully help them avoid repeating the...
The European Court of Justice and the rule of Precedent
Case study - 5 pages - European law
The rule of precedent is the legal principle under which judges have to follow the judgments established previously by upper courts. The Latin translation of "stare decisis" gives an unequivocal definition of the concept as it means "to stand by that which is decided". Precedent underpins the...
Critically assess the extent to which the Court of Justice of the European Union, through its interpretation of EU law, has struck an appropriate balance between the need to respect single market objectives
Case study - 5 pages - European union
European integration was always conveyed by economic motives. The European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community, and the European Union (EU) were founded by economic interests. Since the European Union is a sui generis organisation and is also founded by the law, those...
Tallberg, J. (2003) 'The agenda-shaping powers of the EU Council Presidency'
Essay - 4 pages - European union
The Presidency of the European Union Council is an attribution that is not often analysed in the literature on EU decision-making. To put it briefly, the member state holding the Presidency of the Council for six months is in fact chairing the meetings of the European Council, meeting at least...
The European employment strategy - published: 11/05/2009
Thesis - 21 pages - European union
The European Union is the most accomplished multinational organization in the world. Since it's beginning in 1950, with the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Union has been integrating more and more, becoming a unique. The European Union was at first, based on economic performances....
