English Unlimited HAK/HUM 3, Schulbuch mit Audio-CD und CD-ROM (mit Handelskorrespondenz)

130 Living and working together 09 LANGUAGE SKILLS EXPLORE LOOK AGAIN EXTRAS Info point: The European Union Austria is an EU member. Do you think Austrians are generally well-informed about the EU? How about you? Do the quiz on p. 173 to test your EU knowledge. Read the article about the European Union below, then decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F). T F 1 The European Union is a pre-war organisation. 2 Only companies profit from the common European market. 3 The single market has been implemented with a few exceptions. 4 If you travel from one Schengen country to another, you don’t have to show your passport. 5 All the EU member states have similar economies. a 37 b 38 e EU is an economic and political union whose origins go back to a er World War 2. Originally a purely economic union of six countries, the EU was established under its current name in 1993 by the Treaty of Maastricht. It reached its current size of 28 members with the accession of Croatia in 2013. e most important institutions of the EU are the EuropeanCommission, the EUCouncil, the Court of Justice, the EuropeanCentral Bank and the European Parliament, which is elected every ve years. By introducing a body of laws (the ‘acquis communautaire’ 6 ) that applies in all member countries, the EU has developed a single market ; this means that border and customs controls have been eliminated, which bene ts both consumers and businesses. e single market is supported by common policies on trade and agriculture while still allowing for regional development . On the whole, the single market has become a reality, and the ‘four freedoms’ (free movement of people, goods, services, and capital), have become a cornerstone of EU legislation. Some barriers still exist, as for example national regulations concerning the right to practise certain professions. e Eurozone, which was established in 1999, is a monetary union of 17 states. e common currency is the euro. Together with UK pounds, US dollars, Japanese yen and Swiss francs, it is a world currency, which means it is accepted for trade all over the world. e political nature of the Union expresses itself through its common foreign and security policy . e EU is trying to speak with one voice in matters of foreign relations and defence. Around the world, permanent diplomatic missions have been opened. ese EU missions work separately from the missions of the member states . In addition, there are EU representations in each of the member states. Passport controls have been abolished within the Schengen Area, which includes 22 EU and 4 non-EU countries. e EU is a member of the UN, the WTO and the G20. Its population is over 500 million, which is slightly more than 7% of the world population, and it generates almost 20% of global GDP. Like other areas of the world, the EU has been aected by the recent economic crisis . e future will show if the member states, some of which have widely diverging economies and interests, will be able to weather the storm together and continue the common European project that has brought an unprecedented era of peace and prosperity inEurope. THE EUROPEAN UNION Greece Romania Bulgaria Cyprus Malta Italy Swit. Liech. Slovenia Hungary Czech Rep. Poland Slovakia Germany Denmark Neth. Belgium France Spain Portugal Britain Ireland EUROPE’S SCHENGEN ZONE Iceland Norway Sweden Finland Estonia Latvia Lithuania Lux. Austria Pre 2007 EU Schengen nations Non EU Schengen nations Other EU nations EU nations who joined Schengen zone in 2007 6 Acquis communautaire: the accumulated legislation, legal acts, and court decisions constituting European Union law Nur zu Prüfzw cken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv