WEEK 9: IS POLITICAL POWER IN BRITAIN CENTRED IN LONDON OR BRUSSELS?

2 WHO RUNS BRITAIN? “In Europe, not run by Europe”

3 WHO RUNS BRITAIN? “… none of the old political parties are prepared to accept that the real government of Britain is now in Brussels.” UKIP election manifesto, 2005

4 WHO RUNS BRITAIN? 1. Jose Manuel Barroso22% 2. Rupert Murdoch15% 3. Parliament14% 4. British people12% 5. Gus O’Donnell10% 6. Terry Leahy 7% 7. Tony Blair 7% 8. Google 6% 9. Gordon Brown 4% 10. Shami Chakrabarti 3% Source: Today Programme, BBC Radio 4, Dec 2006

5 ‘DELEGATION’ OF POWER VOTERS PARTIES/ PARLIAMENT GOVERNMENT EUROPEAN UNION REGULATORS BANK OF ENGLAND

6 QUESTIONS FOR THIS WEEK 1.How much power does the European Union wield? Are decisions really made more in Brussels than in London? 2.If ‘yes’, how far is decision making accountable? Does ‘delegating’ power to the EU weaken voters’ control over their political rulers?

7 BRITAIN’S RELATIONS WITH EUROPE: TIMELINE 1951Creation of ECSC under Treaty of Paris 1957Creation of EEC under Treaty of Rome 1960sDe Gaulle rebuffs Britain’s application (1963, 1967) 1973Britain (+ Den, Ire) members of EEC 1986Deepening of internal market: Single European Act 1992Deepening of political union: Treaty on European Union (‘Maastricht’) 1997Treaty of Amsterdam 2000Treaty of Nice 2007Treaty of Lisbon NB. Similar material in Kavanagh et al, 2005: Table 8.2:

EUROPEAN INTEGRATION  Incremental progress  Economic integration followed by political integration  Britain not only ‘odd one out’ - Fra/Den/Ire all concerned with preserving national interests within EU  Britain not always laggard  But domestic concerns over ‘political union’ 8

9 DIVISION OF POLICY POWERS EU ONLY Customs; Internal market; Competition SHARED: EU DOMINANT Agriculture; Enviroment; Energy; Social policy SHARED: UK DOMINANT Education; Foreign affairs; Justice and home affairs UK ONLY Health, social security, law and order, economic policy 9

10 DIVISION OF POLICY POWERS Domestic actors no longer sovereign  Supremacy of European law (eg. Factortame case in 1991, Equal Opportunity Commission in 1994)  But these areas mainly internal market/equality Growing EU competence  eg. environment: pollution  On sensitive topics (immigration, currency), national governments can ‘opt out’  ‘Bread and butter’ issues still decided nationally

11 DELEGATION OF POWER TO EU NOT NECESSARILY DETRIMENTAL Supra-national ‘collective action’  National government may not be able to meet citizens’ needs on some (international) policy issues - Environmental pollution, immigration, crime EU ‘fit’ with Britain  EU sometimes doesn’t ‘fit’ (eg. social policy)  … but sometimes it does (eg. single market).

12 KEY EUROPEAN UNION INSTITUTIONS European Commission Europa - The European Union On-Line Europa - The European Union On-Line European Parliament Council of Ministers

13 EU DECISION MAKING PROCESS I EUROPEAN COMMISSION COUNCIL OF MINISTERS EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Qualified Majority Voting 72% of total votes 50% of member states 62% of EU population

14 EU DECISION MAKING PROCESS II EUROPEAN COMMISSION COUNCIL OF MINISTERS EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Unanimity

15 NUCLEAR OPTION: OPTING OUT OF COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS  1992: Monetary union; ‘Social Chapter’  1993: ‘Working Time Directive’  1997: Immigration and asylum  2007: Police and judicial cooperation on crime

16 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Powers of ‘co-decision’ with Council Power to reject Commission Powers to reject EU budget

17 TURNOUT FOR EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS Source: House of Commons Library paper 04/50 (2004)

18 CONCLUSION Which tier is responsible for key policy issues?  Increasing delegation of power to European Union  But many (most?) key policy issues still decided by national governments How can Britain maintain its national interest?  Collective decision making can be in Britain’s interests  Britain can be out-voted in Council  ‘Nuclear’ option of opt-out  Some issues preserve decision making by national governments: veto How far is EU decision making representative/accountable?  Growing role of European Parliament  But are citizens engaged with European Parliament?