Click here to read the NHSMUN 2011 CoEU Background Guide.

The CoEU blog is now available

Topic 1: Implementation of Environmental Policy in All EU Processes

Environmental policy is one of the EU’s success stories. EU legislation has led to improvements in cleaning up the air and its rivers, for example. However, the EU still faces major problems, and in some areas the environmental degradation is actually getting worse. On the one hand, the EU has arguably the most progressive environmental policy in the world — one that continues to grow in depth and breadth. But on the other hand, the state of the European environment is a cause of growing concern. Economic activity continues to deplete natural resources and pollute the atmosphere despite the enactment of far-reaching environmental policy measures.

Since the early 1990s, member states enshrined the principles of sustainable development and respect for the environment in EU treaties. By integrating environmental protection requirements into the definition and implementation of other policies and activities (a process called environmental policy integration, or EPI) the EU put environmental consciousness at its core. As a result, environmental policy is approaching a crossroads. It may become simply another policy area or the next ‘big idea’ in European integration, influencing the nature of all internal policies as well as the EU’s mission in external relations.

It is up to the delegates to decide how environmental policy will move forward. It is increasingly clear that the streamlining of policy processes is necessary to improve environmental conditions, but varying interests delay progress. Certain Member States’ contend that environmental policy should be a domestic issue, while others believe it is necessary for the EU to handle and enforce policy initiatives.

Topic 2: Harmonization of Immigration and Asylum Policy

In 1998, the European Commission issued a road map regarding immigration and asylum policy that called for a balanced approach to achieve different objectives: on the one hand, securing rights for long-term foreign residents and asylum-seekers, and assessing the need for new foreign labor in Europe; on the other, fighting illegal immigration and trafficking by reinforcing partnerships with the countries of origin. The September 11th terrorist attacks in the USA pushed the EU’s agenda in a new direction. EU leaders linked the fight against terrorism with illegal immigration and sought to reinforce border controls by enacting a stricter visa policy. In June 2002 the Spanish presidency decided to dedicate most of the Seville summit to intensifying the fight against illegal immigration. Immigration and asylum have become ‘high politics’ in the EU: a prerogative traditionally at the core of the nation-state is now at the top of the agenda of European integration. The Commission produces a flurry of legislative proposals and the Council holds innumerable meetings on Justice and Home Affairs. Moreover, immigration has become an integral part of the EU’s external relations, and was prominent in the accession negotiations with the Central and Eastern European countries.

*Please note that this committee is meant to simulate the quality of debate seen in the Council. The simulation of the committee will not emphasize the full intricasies of the European legal system, but will rather encourage delegates to think critically about how to build consensus within a bloc. For more information about this committee, please contact Director-General Chris Talamo at dg.nhsmun@imuna.org.