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The effects of EC in the United Kingdom (2) by SADIONA ABAZAJ

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Sadiona Abazaj
Sadiona Abazaj

The document discusses the effects of European Community (EC) membership on the United Kingdom. It summarizes that EC membership impacted the UK constitution, democratic control of the executive, national economy, and other policy areas. Specifically, it notes that EC membership introduced a new constitutional order that took precedence over UK law. It also shifted trade patterns, increasing trade within the EC, and introduced the common agricultural policy, which increased farm sizes and UK food self-sufficiency. The EC also influenced UK policy on environmental protection and women's rights in the workplace. Overall, the document concludes that EC membership brought more significant consequences for the UK than were initially anticipated, diminishing UK sovereignty.

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University of Tirana Faculty of Foreign Languages Branch: English Subject: British Studies Lecturer: Iris Klosi ¡®The effects of EC in the United Kingdom¡¯ 22.11.2010 Worked by: Sadiona Abazaj
European Union is the organization of European countries dedicated to increasing economic integration and strengthening cooperation among its members. One of its most significant and powerful member is United Kingdom, a constitutional monarchy in northwestern Europe, officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. But how does this membership influence and shapes the United Kingdom? What are some of the main effects of EC on this country? Although Britain tried to minimize the impact of EC in the country, the membership had an effect on the constitution, on the degree of democratic control of the executive, on the structure and functioning of the national economy, and also on other areas of policy. Firstly, when Britain entered the EC it become part of a new constitutional order that was based on very different principle from those that governed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Britain prior to membership had no formal written constitution, whereas EC had the founding Treaties to which has been added since 1987 the Single European Act. This documents act as a written constitution against which the actions of the decision-making institutions and of the member states can be judged. The body that sits in the judgment is the European Court of Justice. From the point of view of compatibility with British Constitution principles, the most important doctrine, that was well-established before British entry, was that Community law must take precedence over national law where there is a conflict. A second aspect of the doctrine is the principle ¡®the later law overrides the earlier¡¯ or also known as ¡®no Parliament can bind its successor¡¯, In other words, if two states come into conflict, the Courts are obliged to give precedence to the law passed later in time. What is more, membership of the EC has posed particular problems for the doctrine of the sovereignty of Parliament, because it has introduced a category of law which, according to the interpretation of the European Court of Justice, is more fundamental than statute, namely EC law. Now the United Kingdom lives under laws that are made in Brussels as well as law that are made at Westminster. However many British parliament remained reluctant to see the powers of the European Parliament increased, believing that this would be the first step to reducing the status of Westminster Parliament. The reality is that EC had already passed the point where complete democratic control could be exercised from Westminster. Secondly, it has always been obvious that membership of the EC would have economic consequence for Britain. Perhaps the most obvious economic effect of the membership was a change in both the intensity and pattern of British Trade. By 1986, around half of Britain¡¯s total trade, both imports and exports, was with the rest of the EC. In comparison in the mid-1960, the states that today form the EC accounted for less than 20 per cent of Britain¡¯s total trade. At that time British trade still reflected the legacy of Empire and Commonwealth links, with manufacturing goods representing only 44 per cent of imports, but 84 per cent of exports. By the mid-1980s everything changed, manufactures still accounted 75 per cent of exports, but they also accounted 73 per cent of imports. What is more, changes in both the geographical pattern of trade and its composition reflected membership of the EC. The removal of tariffs increased the likelihood that Britain would both export more to and import more from the EC. But in reality Britain was only a starting point for penetration of the rest of the EC. Furthermore as far as Agriculture is concerned, the biggest difficulty for Britain to result from late entry to the EC was the
common agriculture policy. Food prices were a particular sensitive political issue at the time of the membership applications and the referendum. The traditional British system was one of the deficiency payments, in which food prices were allowed to find their own level, farmers were compensated for any short fall in their incomes by direct payments from the government, while the system that had been adopted by the Community was based on guaranteed prices. So on the one hand; if prices fell below the agreed levels, the commission would intervene in the market to buy up surplus produce, on the other hand if prices were above the level, subsidies were paid to farmers. The consequence was that farm size increased and also British self-sufficiency in food increased. For the first time in history Britain became a net exporter of grain. Another issue that the EC has always concerned itself is the protection of the environment. But what really happened was that the British government found itself in conflict with the EC on environmental matters. The first disagreement was for the pollution of rivers. The Commission had proposed to the Council of ministers that there should be maximum legal limits on the omission of pollutants into river, whereas the British maintained that this was inappropriate for Britain, which as an island had faster flowing rivers that cleared pollution more swiftly. The second incident that had an effect in Britain concerned airborne pollutants where Britain was seen as major offender, because emission of noxious gasses from its coal-fired power station were identified as a major cause of acid rain in north-western Europe. Another issue that greatly concerned EC was the purity of drinking water. According to EC Britain failed to achieve the required standards. As far effects on social policy are concerned, the most obvious effect on social policy in Britain of membership of the EC was in the field of woman¡¯s rights in the workplace. In the 1960 women became a more important part of the labor throughout Europe. Also measures were taken in the realm of equal pay and of equal access for men and woman to employment, training, promotion. This led women¡¯s groups to adopt a more positive attitude toward the EC. To conclude, membership of the EC brought more far-reaching consequence for Britain than were anticipated when the applications were made. Despite the efforts of successive governments to limit the effects of the membership, there was little room to adopt that British sovereignty had been diminished by membership of the EC and that it would be diminished further. The end

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The effects of EC in the United Kingdom (2) by SADIONA ABAZAJ

  • 1. University of Tirana Faculty of Foreign Languages Branch: English Subject: British Studies Lecturer: Iris Klosi ¡®The effects of EC in the United Kingdom¡¯ 22.11.2010 Worked by: Sadiona Abazaj
  • 2. European Union is the organization of European countries dedicated to increasing economic integration and strengthening cooperation among its members. One of its most significant and powerful member is United Kingdom, a constitutional monarchy in northwestern Europe, officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. But how does this membership influence and shapes the United Kingdom? What are some of the main effects of EC on this country? Although Britain tried to minimize the impact of EC in the country, the membership had an effect on the constitution, on the degree of democratic control of the executive, on the structure and functioning of the national economy, and also on other areas of policy. Firstly, when Britain entered the EC it become part of a new constitutional order that was based on very different principle from those that governed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Britain prior to membership had no formal written constitution, whereas EC had the founding Treaties to which has been added since 1987 the Single European Act. This documents act as a written constitution against which the actions of the decision-making institutions and of the member states can be judged. The body that sits in the judgment is the European Court of Justice. From the point of view of compatibility with British Constitution principles, the most important doctrine, that was well-established before British entry, was that Community law must take precedence over national law where there is a conflict. A second aspect of the doctrine is the principle ¡®the later law overrides the earlier¡¯ or also known as ¡®no Parliament can bind its successor¡¯, In other words, if two states come into conflict, the Courts are obliged to give precedence to the law passed later in time. What is more, membership of the EC has posed particular problems for the doctrine of the sovereignty of Parliament, because it has introduced a category of law which, according to the interpretation of the European Court of Justice, is more fundamental than statute, namely EC law. Now the United Kingdom lives under laws that are made in Brussels as well as law that are made at Westminster. However many British parliament remained reluctant to see the powers of the European Parliament increased, believing that this would be the first step to reducing the status of Westminster Parliament. The reality is that EC had already passed the point where complete democratic control could be exercised from Westminster. Secondly, it has always been obvious that membership of the EC would have economic consequence for Britain. Perhaps the most obvious economic effect of the membership was a change in both the intensity and pattern of British Trade. By 1986, around half of Britain¡¯s total trade, both imports and exports, was with the rest of the EC. In comparison in the mid-1960, the states that today form the EC accounted for less than 20 per cent of Britain¡¯s total trade. At that time British trade still reflected the legacy of Empire and Commonwealth links, with manufacturing goods representing only 44 per cent of imports, but 84 per cent of exports. By the mid-1980s everything changed, manufactures still accounted 75 per cent of exports, but they also accounted 73 per cent of imports. What is more, changes in both the geographical pattern of trade and its composition reflected membership of the EC. The removal of tariffs increased the likelihood that Britain would both export more to and import more from the EC. But in reality Britain was only a starting point for penetration of the rest of the EC. Furthermore as far as Agriculture is concerned, the biggest difficulty for Britain to result from late entry to the EC was the
  • 3. common agriculture policy. Food prices were a particular sensitive political issue at the time of the membership applications and the referendum. The traditional British system was one of the deficiency payments, in which food prices were allowed to find their own level, farmers were compensated for any short fall in their incomes by direct payments from the government, while the system that had been adopted by the Community was based on guaranteed prices. So on the one hand; if prices fell below the agreed levels, the commission would intervene in the market to buy up surplus produce, on the other hand if prices were above the level, subsidies were paid to farmers. The consequence was that farm size increased and also British self-sufficiency in food increased. For the first time in history Britain became a net exporter of grain. Another issue that the EC has always concerned itself is the protection of the environment. But what really happened was that the British government found itself in conflict with the EC on environmental matters. The first disagreement was for the pollution of rivers. The Commission had proposed to the Council of ministers that there should be maximum legal limits on the omission of pollutants into river, whereas the British maintained that this was inappropriate for Britain, which as an island had faster flowing rivers that cleared pollution more swiftly. The second incident that had an effect in Britain concerned airborne pollutants where Britain was seen as major offender, because emission of noxious gasses from its coal-fired power station were identified as a major cause of acid rain in north-western Europe. Another issue that greatly concerned EC was the purity of drinking water. According to EC Britain failed to achieve the required standards. As far effects on social policy are concerned, the most obvious effect on social policy in Britain of membership of the EC was in the field of woman¡¯s rights in the workplace. In the 1960 women became a more important part of the labor throughout Europe. Also measures were taken in the realm of equal pay and of equal access for men and woman to employment, training, promotion. This led women¡¯s groups to adopt a more positive attitude toward the EC. To conclude, membership of the EC brought more far-reaching consequence for Britain than were anticipated when the applications were made. Despite the efforts of successive governments to limit the effects of the membership, there was little room to adopt that British sovereignty had been diminished by membership of the EC and that it would be diminished further. The end