Part I
Advantages and Disadvantages of Being a EU Member:
The European Union (2012) stated that "the EU is a unique economic and political partnership between 27 European countries that together cover much of the continent". The EU is active in several policy areas like agriculture, fisheries, culture, business, education, customs, economy etc. (European Union, 2012). We are going to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of being a member of the EU.
Advantages:
The health of the environment is important for human being so it is important to preserve it. The EU has created policies with a purpose to protect the environment. Apart from this, EU has created policies to prevent people from turning to terrorism (Derham, 2010). These policies are concentrated on the radiation of the terrorist group like Al Qaeda and the groups that it inspires (Council of the European Union, 2008). The EU’s priority is to ensure the safety and security of its members. As a result, EU has been working with the regions that are across its borders like the Balkans, North Africa, the Caucasus and the Middle East.
Derham (2010) says that both EU citizens and businesses have the benefits of the single market. According to him, 2.15% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) comes from the money that citizens get from the single market which was approximately 708 EUROS per person in 2006. In addition to this, the single market has contributed to reduce the number of unemployed. According to CEC (2008), more than six million jobs were created in the last decade and the European industry has contributed a lot to increase the number of jobs within European Member States. Citizens of any country of the EU are allowed to live and work in any other EU country.
Disadvantages:
Prior to the implementation of the European Communities Act 1972 the UK had complete supremacy. The national sovereignty is reduced gradually as the member states follow the EU law.
To find more important disadvantages of EU membership, you need to look at the States separately. For instance, some of the larger EU countries such as Germany, France and the UK would argue that the fact that they contribute more money to the EU then the other countries, to being a disadvantage (which it is of course if you are looking at in basic realistic terms). Smaller States such as Ireland, Austria and Slovenia and say that the fact larger countries such as the ones above have more of an influence and say on the workings of the EU, to be a disadvantage for them.
References:
Derham, M.D. (2010) European Union: Risk-Benefit Analysis [Online]. Available at:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/29274464/EU-Risk-Benefit-Analysis-written-March-2010 (Accessed: 30 October 2012).
European Union (2012) Basic information on the European Union. Available at:
http://europa.eu/about-eu/basic-information/index_en.htm (Accessed: 24 October 2012).
European Union (2012) Policy areas of the European Union. Available at:
http://europa.eu/pol/index_en.htm (Accessed: 24 October 2012).
