Essay from the year 2004 in the subject Politics - Topic: European Union, grade: 1,5, University of Edinburgh, language: English, abstract: The European Union (EU) is a hybrid and unique body, which "e;(...) does not fit with many of our preconceived notions of how politics is organized."e; (Cini, 2003-(a):1) Two aspects contribute to its "e;distinctiveness"e;: First, the EU has a two- level nature: it combines supranational with intergovernmental features. Supranationalism is defined as "e;(...) the existence of an authority that is 'higher' than that of the nation state and capable of imposing its will upon it."e; (Heywood, 2000, 259). Applied to the EU, this definition would only concern the supranational EU- institutions. But supranationalism also refers to the common interests of the Union as a whole, and to most policy-areas, which are under the authority of the EU. The intergovernmental EU-level is characterised by the dominance of state-sovereignty. It relates to some EU-policy-areas and particularly to the special role of the 25 EU-member states, which have considerable influence within the Union. Both EU- levels have been subject to two different EU- integration theories. Neo- functionalism explains the creation and importance of a supranational stage with its core-concept of spillover. Intergovernmentalism is characterized by its state-centrism and focus on sovereignty. The second unique aspect of the EU, related to the first, is the complex EU-policy-making process. Legislation, developed by the EU- institutions, has to be implemented on a national level. Particularly the European Commission and the Council of the EU are main actors in policy-making. In this process, the Commission explicitly represents the Union's interests and is thus referred to as supranational. The Council shows strong intergovernmental characteristics. It acts on behalf of the sovereign EU-member states and therefore has considerable influence in policy-making. [...]
