Single Market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Single Market - Essay Example The focus in this paper is on Single Market, also known as the Internal Market, a very well-known European Union project with an objective to mold Europe into a single economy and create free trade within the union. This influential project encompasses European Customs Union, the single currency and other policies which are proposed to unite the economy of EU into a single unit. It was in 1957 when the Treaty of Rome was established to provide the conditions for the economic community which includes progress of internal market, single agricultural policy and the structure of the institutions of European Community. The Treaty of Rome introduced the concept of qualified majority of voting. The Treaty of Rome set out four freedoms in Europe which include freedom of movement of goods, to provide services, of capital and of people. It was in 1968 when European Customs Union was created to further establish the provisions of the treaty. The creation of this treaty marked the end of the NTB s or non-tariff barriers. After the creation of this treaty, there was a clash between laissez-faire and interventionist as well as between regulated capitalism and neo-liberalism. In order to further take step in creating a single market, the European community created a policy of harmonisation to reconcile the differences in national regulatory practices and to create more common rules. However, this policy did not fully succeed because of complexity of the processes including Non-Tariff Barriers, the decision rule of the majority and lastly, it posted low political interest from the member states. (â€Å"The Single Market†). This common market or harmonisation was created by the Treaty of Rome in order to eliminate trade barriers and to ensure economic progress among the member states. The achievement of the full implementation of the policy did not succeed largely because of the selection of detailed legislative harmonisation (â€Å"European Parliament†). Since the member states wanted to have everything voted unanimously, harmonisation became very difficult to achieve. The European Court of Justice and Mutual Recognition In order to develop the purpose of creating a unified market in Europe, a crucial step was made by the European Court of Justice. The principle of mutual recognition was created to guarantee the free movement of goods and services. However, this principle does not require all members of the union to have a unified legislation. Both goods and services cannot be banned from sale on the territory of another member states except if there overriding of general interest such as health, consumer protection and protection of the environment (â€Å"The Mutual Recognition†). Aside from this very simple provision, it must be noted that the rules of the member state of origin of the goods and services must prevail. This is considered a practical and influential tool for an economic integration without sacrificing the local, regio nal and national tradition ( â€Å"The Mutual Recognition†). Though there is a move to integrate the market into a single market, the community still wanted to retain the diversity of the products and services offered by the member states. This crucial step promoted common reciprocity of standards than harmonisation policy. It is said that member states can only call upon national restrictions, traditions, customs and control free trade in areas considered not mutually equivalent (â€Å"The Single Market†). Neoliberalism and the European Union According to Hermann (n.d.),