Addressing the Debt Crisis in the European Union: The Validity of Mandatory Collective Action Clauses and Extended Maturities
2011; University of Chicago Law School; Volume: 12; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1529-0816
Autores Tópico(s)EU Law and Policy Analysis
ResumoAbstract The sovereign debt crisis in the European Union has put significant pressure on the fundamental divisions of power between the Union government and member states. One part of the recommended solution for the crisis calls for the imposition of mandatory collective action clauses and extended maturities for all sovereign bonds issued by member states, the first instances of Union-wide fiscal policy choices being forced upon member states. After an explanation of the relevant bond terms, this Comment evaluates the validity of the proposed mandates based on the current state of the framework of power in the EU and concludes that the mandates are valid under the EU implied powers doctrine. The Comment also explains why the acceptance or rejection of these bond-term mandates has the potential to lead to either the full integration or dissolution of the EU. Table of Contents I. Introduction 202 A. The European Union 202 B. The 2010 EU Sovereign Debt Crisis 203 C. The European Stability Mechanism 205 D. Consequences 207 II. Legal Background 210 A. Collective Action Clauses 210 B. Maturity Terms 212 C. Framework of Power in the EU 213 1. The principle of conferral 213 2. The principle of subsidiarity 216 3. The principle of proportionality 218 III. Legal Arguments 21 9 A. Explicit Conferral of Exclusive Power 219 B. Article 352 221 C. Explicit Conferral of Shared Power 223 D. Implied Power 225 IV. Conclusion 226 I. INTRODUCTION A. The European Union We must now face the difficult taek of moving towarde a eingle economy, a single political entity. For the first time since the fall of the Roman Empire we have the opportunity to unite Europe.1 Debates about the nature of the European Union (EU or Community) project - is it economic, monetary, political? - have raged on and off since its creation in 1992. Some, like former EU Commission President Romano Prodi, quoted above, botii see it as and want it to be political, a true integration of Europe into a super-state. Others passionately oppose that position, viewing the migration of sovereignty to the supra-national level as a dangerous trend.2 In 1993, a group of European countries continued the historic trend toward integration and became party to the Maastricht Treaty, the foundational document establishing the constitutional basis of the current EU. …
Referência(s)