Europe Politics is a fascinating subject. The European Union was created in May of 1999 and is designed as an economic Union, but also has political elements as well. There are four supranational institutions that make up the EU, and they are the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Commission, the European Council, and the European Investment Fund (EIF). The Treaties act as an agreement between the EU and its member states and provide for various aspects of the relationship between the EU and its countries. Each country has the right to ratify the Treaties if it chooses to, and must do so in accordance with its constitution.
So, how does this all work? Well, first of all, there are many parts of the EU, and each one has political power in it depending on who governs it. For example, there is the Commission which can decide things like trade deals, tax rules, and whether certain procedures are legal or not. There are other institutions such as the European Council and the European Investment fund which have more political clout than the ECB and Commission combined. These are the governments of Europe and their decisions impact all of Europe.
So, politics plays a huge part in Europe. It isn’t just about the institutions and laws, it’s all about who rules what. Let’s take a look at some examples. A couple of European governments recently agreed to a bailout for Spain and Greece, and those governments have one thing in common; they have decided to live under their own currency, the Euro, rather than the stronger pound that the United Kingdom uses. That decision affects every single trader and investor in Europe, and the effects could be far reaching.