Running Head: Week 7 Assignment

The European Union:

The European Union (EU) was created by the Maastricht Treaty on November 1st 1993.
It is a political and economic union between European countries which makes its own policies
concerning the members economies, societies, and laws and security.
European Union is based on three pillars: giving more power to the European parliament;
a common security/foreign policy; involvement in the domestic affairs of member nations on
justice and home affairs.
Currency and economic reform were driven by the fact that the US and Japanese
economies were growing faster than Europes, after expanding quickly into the new
developments in electronics. In 1999 the Treaty of Amsterdam came into effect, bringing
employment, working and living conditions and other social and legal issues into the EU.
The latest members of the European Union are Romania and Bulgaria who joined in
2007. As of July 1, 2013, there are twenty-eight member countries of the European Union. On
July 1, 2013 Croatia became the 28th and newest member of the European Union.
Positive and negative points of joining the EU:
The European Union, or EU, is a unified monetary body that tries to balance the needs of
its 28 member countries, all of whom are independent fiscal and political entities. It has the
advantages of a large, unified trading area but the disadvantages of political conflict between its
members. It tries to overcome these situations through trade agreements and negotiations. .
Formation of area of free trade helped the member countries solve economic problems and boost
the trade transactions
1.

All border controls between members were eliminated, allowing the free flow
of goods and people

Running Head: Week 7 Assignment

2.

Any product legally manufactured in one member state can be sold in any other
member, without tariffs or duties. Taxes have been standardized. Practitioners
of most services (law, medicine, tourism, banking, insurance, etc.) can operate
in all member countries.

3.

The EU Council sets the policies and proposes new laws. The political
leadership, or Presidency of the EU, is held by a different leader every six
months. The European Parliament debates and approves the laws proposed
by the Council. Its members are elected every five years.The European
Commission staffs and execute the laws.

4.

Because of the EU, all the member countries have a single market wherein
products are low-priced and there are no charges when it comes to custom
tax.

5.

Citizens can freely travel, study, work, or live in any European country of
their choice. Because of the union, the underdeveloped regions get help
from richer countries. Also more jobs are created due to the cumulative
power. Workers are protected through the European Working Time
Directive.

However there are some disadvantages of joining the European Union. Some of the policies
do not prove beneficial for all the members. However they have to execute and implement the
laws once passed. Also not all member countries are using the Euro though the EU
emphasized its use; still, many problems have risen over the years. The citizens of member
countries are free to move from one place to another; this has led to overcrowding in the
major cities of UK and it has increased prices of houses, as well as congestion on the roads.