European Union Lobbying.

EUROPEAN UNION LOBBYING Introduction Today we are going to look very superficially at lobbying the European Union institutions. We'll begin with a quick run through the basic policy making structures of the EU (but it is only very much an introduction; if you want more detailed information on any of the topics raised there are several useful textbooks in the Library) and then in the second half I'll discuss how these processes impact upon the practice of public affairs and how lobbyists are regulated in the EU. To begin with an idea about the scale of lobbying that goes on in the EU institutions - in 1992 the European Commission estimated that there were perhaps 10,000 people representing 3,000 groups who were involved in lobbying the Commission, Parliament and Council of Ministers. The European Parliament In its early days, the European Parliament was made up of appointed Members, but it has been entirely directly elected since 1979. The Parliament holds its full plenary sessions in Strasbourg (for one week a month), meetings of its committees take place in Brussels (over two weeks a month), and its administrative departments are based in Luxembourg. The 626 MEPs are generally elected as party politicians, although a few independents will always manage to get elected. However, once elected the MEP will usually join a particular political grouping within the

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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The Importance of the Cyprus Issue in terms of the Accomplishment of the ESDP

METU INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT IRS 3140558 The Making of European Security Prof.Dr.Mustafa TÜRKES 'CYPRUS-TURKEY-EU TRIANGLE' The Importance of the Cyprus Issue in terms of the Accomplishment of the ESDP BURCU SEÇKINER 1458595 April 2006 Abstract....................................................................................... 3 Introduction................................................................................... 4 EU- TURKEY- CYPRUS TRIANGLE................................................... 5 I. History of the Conflict and the EU's Intervention * Living in Disharmony II. Cold War Times................................................................ 7 * NATO vs. WEU III. Post-Cold War and the EU.................................................... 8 * The transformation process of EU's stance............................. 9 * Helsinki Summit........................................................... 11 IV. Positions of the Related Countries with regard to the Security Perspective of Turkey's Candidacy and the EU's Enlargement........................ 12 * Turkey's Position * Greece's Position........................................................... 13 * The European Union's Position.......................................... 14 Conclusion.................................................................................... 15

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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To what extent is the city of Jerusalem vital to the followers of three main world religions in the present time?

To what extent is the city of Jerusalem vital to the followers of three main world religions in the present time? In this course-work, I will be examining the significance of Jerusalem to the current followers of the three main religions. In order for me to do so, I must examine Jerusalem's history and its significance to the three monotheistic faiths. I will also be discussing whether Jerusalem's importance is due to religious or political reasons, and whether the Middle East conflict arises from spiritual or political differences. Jerusalem is the ancient city, which has great significance to the three religions of the Book- Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. For many years, Jerusalem, the Scared, or the Holy city has peacefully accommodated Christian, Jewish, and Muslim people. Jerusalem has been numerously occupied, around twenty times. There are four main influential periods, which Jerusalem has witnessed. Christians dominated the Holy land for the least period of time, around 427 years, followed by the second shortest time, which saw the Ancient city being dominated by the Jews for 543 years, it is believed that the Pagan's dominated Jerusalem for around 800 years, leaving the Muslims to reign over Jerusalem for the longest period of time, 1193 years1. But there are some common beliefs, which the three religions share when it comes to Jerusalem. That is that Jerusalem

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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Evolution of Democracy and the Athenian Constitution

Kasem Iqbal Evolution of Democracy and the Athenian Constitution Democracy is defined in modern times as government by the people. To put that in perspective and better understand all that democracy entails we must consider its origins. It is surprising indeed that even today tyrannies and dictatorships exist in the world when more than two and a half thousand years ago the ancient Athenians had developed a functional and direct form of democracy. What contributed to this remarkable achievement and how it changed the socio-political scene in Athens is what will be considered in this paper. The paper will have three sections, each detailing the various stages of political development from the kings of Attica to the time of Pericles when, in its golden age, Athens was at the height of its imperial power. The historical sources used are "On Democracy and Oligarchy" attributed to Aristotle and Xenophon, "The Rise and Fall of Athens" by Plutarch and "History of the Peloponnesian War" by Thucydides. The first stage in Athenian history was the time of the monarchs of Attica. Most of this period is shrouded in myth and legend. The ancient kings had absolute authority and sovereignty. In those times the king was the head of the state, chief priest, general and judge. The obvious qualifications for this post were birth, wealth and military power. The king may have been

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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T difficult for export orientated economics to sustain the land owning elites much longer. (www.psa.ac.uk/cps/1995/camm.pdf accessed on 1st February 2005)

ESSAY TITLE - ACCOUNT FOR THE FRAGILITY OF LIBERAL DEMOCRACY IN ARGENTINA AND BRAZIL PRIOR TO THE 1980s. This discussion is a comparative study that will be a focused comparison, what this means is that the study is going to focus on four specific factors that made liberal democracy difficult to maintain in Argentina and Brazil during this period. The discussion will examine the internal and external factors that contributed to the erosion of liberal democracy. The first section will examine the impact of export orientated economics on politics and society in Argentina and Brazil between 1900 and 1930. This changed after 1930 and a new economic development strategy would emerge to replace export orientated economics, this was state led industrialisation in the form of Import Substitute Industrialisation (ISI) and will be discussed in the second section. The third section will evaluate the similarities and differences in populist thinking under the leadership of Vargas in Brazil (1938 - 1945) and Peron in Argentina (1946 - 1955). This section will also consider the impact the ISI's had on the establishment of the 'populist state' in both countries. The final section of this discussion is going to examine some of the conditions that resulted in a sustained period of military authoritarianism from the mid sixties through to the mid eighties. This will consider some of

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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Back ground information about the EU

Back ground information about the EU The history of the EU goes back to 1946, when Winston Churchill called for a "kind of United States of Europe" in a speech he gave at the Zurich University. In the same year the European Federalists Union was set up in Paris, France. In 1948 the Western Union Treaty was signed by Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Fostered by the International Coordination of Movements for the Unification of Europe Committee, the Europe Congress met in The Hague, the Netherlands. It was chaired by Winston Churchill and attended by 800 delegates. Participants recommended that a European Deliberative Assembly and a European Special Council, in charge of preparing political and economic integration of European Countries, was to be created. They also advise the adoption of a Human Rights Charter and, to ensure the respect of such charter, the creation of a Court of Justice. In 1956, the Belgian Minister for Foreign Affairs presented to his ECSC colleagues a report on the draft Community Treaties foreseeing the creation of the EEC and EURATOM. Meeting in Venice, the Foreign Ministers decided to open intergovernmental negotiations for the conclusions of two Treaties to set up a European Economic Community and an Atomic Energy Community. In 1957, the Treaties establishing the European Economic Community and the European

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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How is Britain's constitution changing in the 21st century?

How is Britain's constitution changing in the 21st century? Introduction: Tony Blair's inception as Prime Minister in May 1997 prompted constitutional change due to manifesto commitment. Labour's first term introduced the first wave of alterations to the traditional document. Subsequently the return of the Labour government in June 2001 heralds a second wave of changes to the British constitution. I believe that the onset of this century will introduce a new phase for the British constitution as 'the momentum continues' (Hazell et al., 2000, 260). This is why I have chosen to investigate such a topic, as it is so relevant on the contemporary stage. A constitution is a body of fundamental laws of a state, which lays down the system of government and serves to define the relations of the legislature, executive and judiciary to each other and the citizen. The UK constitution does not exist as a single document but as an amassment of customs and precedents, together with laws defining certain aspects. In the essay I am going to focus on changing spheres which I believe will influence most upon the constitution. My first focus will be Europe, as it covers such a wealth of potential to modify the constitution. Europe acts as a supranational body on Britain and has assent over some British legislation. Subsisting under the umbrella of the European Union (E.U.) has certainly

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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What is the influence of women social workers in the United States labor movement?

4129511 - What is the influence of women social workers in the United States labor movement? The existence of a union in a workplace is often the difference between a good job and a bad one. It's the difference between a decent and a low standard of living. The existence of a union in a workplace means that you don't have to work in constant fear of your boss, and if you are disciplined or fired, there's the grievance and arbitration process. In essence, being a member of a union means you have some power in the workplace. Unions were formed and workers continue to join unions to this day for a number of reasons: dangerous working conditions, low wages, no benefits and general abuse at the hands of the employer. As unions grew, so did the creation of laws to protect all workers, such as health and safety acts, pensions, workers' compensation, employment standards and labour relations acts. It did not matter if you worked in the public or private sector, in unionized or non-unionized workplace-all wage earners benefited from gains made by unions. The face of the American labor movement in its heyday was that of a burly man, a trucker or assembly-line worker, joining with his brothers to fight for better wages and safety standards. Labor's ranks have dwindled over the years as America's manufacturing base has eroded and companies have tightened reins on their employees.

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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This essay is intended to have an in-depth appraisal of the implication of the adoption of a constitution by the European Union (EU)

Introduction This essay is intended to have an in-depth appraisal of the implication of the adoption of a constitution by the European Union (EU), with a view of looking at the various issues contained in the constitution that are contentious among the Member States (MS) and how these would benefit the EU either through the simplification of the union institutions functions to make them more efficient. Also, it would attempt to draw an overview of the historical existence of the EU, how it has progressed through the years, the various changes that it had undergone, how the various treaties it has adopted have helped in tackling problems encountered while growing. On the other hand, emphasise would be placed in discussing the issues enshrined in the constitution, what it is expected to achieve, why MS have found them unacceptable, and whether the constitution would really fulfil the Union's objective by enhancing its closer integration zealously by the EU and MS. Finally, it would attempt to look into the future, whether there is any hope of implementing the wonderful ideas in this draft constitution. The EU is gradually metamorphosing hopefully to actualise this status with the ratification of the draft constitution by the inter-governmental convention (IGC). There has been general calls that the draft constitution be adopted as it by some MS while in certain issues

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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The EU's CFSP and the Iraq Crisis: A Catalyst for Change?

Chris Moore European Security Dr. Mustafa Türkes May 2006 The EU's CFSP and the Iraq Crisis: A Catalyst for Change? The year 2003 was a difficult one for the European Union's attempts to forge a common foreign and security policy (CFSP). America's launch of a pre-emptive strike against Saddam Hussein's regime split the EU into those For and Against the war. This paper will attempt to examine the crisis over Iraq and its impact upon CFSP. It will begin with a brief overview of the complex nature of CFSP in the post-Cold War period. Second, it will sketch the context surrounding the Iraq Crisis. Finally, the paper will examine the impact that the crisis has had upon CFSP, and speculate on whether or not the crisis will ultimately serve as a catalyst to reformulate CFSP in such a way as to prevent future splits in security policy. Common Foreign and Security Policy in the Post-Cold War Era It is perhaps slightly ironic that Charles De Gaulle, a hero of French nationalists, was historically one of the chief supporters of a common security policy in Europe. He supported the unsuccessful Fouchet Plans of the 1960's that would have taken great steps toward common defense. The development of European Political Cooperation (EPC) in 1970 could also been seen as part of his legacy. Given De Gaulle's dislike of supranationalism, this seems a bit odd. But when one

  • Word count: 5157
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Politics
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