On the EU's nascent legal system
Apparently, the system allowing EU member states to set the punishment for their own citizens' breaches of EU law isn't operating equally across the continent. From the Scotsman, with my bolding:
"[T]the average fine being levied against individuals guilty of forging EU fisheries control documents varies from about £90,000 in the UK to £3,000 in Spain - and just £180 in France.
"National sanctions for failing to comply with EU laws banning dangerous chemical discharges into rivers are equally varied: the UK maximum penalty is five years in prison, compared with two years in France, while Greece has introduced no measures at all."
Of course the Brits aren't happy. And disparities could be understood if they were just between poorer states (we're looking at you, Greece) and wealthier states, but look at the differences between the UK's punishments and those of France. What incentive does Greece have to implement more severe punishments on its citizens? And what about other less-wealthy states, such as Poland and Latvia? How about Bulgaria and Romania?
More in-depth commentary at eureferendum.
(Comedy note - Look at what happens when we snip a bit of one of the above Scotsman sentences, way out of context: "The UK maximum penalty is five years in prison, compared with two years in France." Ha.)
"[T]the average fine being levied against individuals guilty of forging EU fisheries control documents varies from about £90,000 in the UK to £3,000 in Spain - and just £180 in France.
"National sanctions for failing to comply with EU laws banning dangerous chemical discharges into rivers are equally varied: the UK maximum penalty is five years in prison, compared with two years in France, while Greece has introduced no measures at all."
Of course the Brits aren't happy. And disparities could be understood if they were just between poorer states (we're looking at you, Greece) and wealthier states, but look at the differences between the UK's punishments and those of France. What incentive does Greece have to implement more severe punishments on its citizens? And what about other less-wealthy states, such as Poland and Latvia? How about Bulgaria and Romania?
More in-depth commentary at eureferendum.
(Comedy note - Look at what happens when we snip a bit of one of the above Scotsman sentences, way out of context: "The UK maximum penalty is five years in prison, compared with two years in France." Ha.)
posted by bp at
9:36 AM
1 Comments:
I think this problem was foreseen. If one were to examine the legislative history of the EU charter, or wherever power was allocated to individual states to determine their own penalties, they'll discover that states regarded the determination of penalties for violation of the broader EU laws as being within their rights as sovereign states. If I recall correctly, EU states were (and are) paranoid about ceding their sovereignty to a larger organization. If I recall correctly, the grounds underlying the EU was not unity per se, but the generation of economic growth. (As the EU evolved from the EEC and the EC.) Greater interdependence fosters such growth.
I don't see Europe overcoming such disputes in the near future ...
By
t'su, at 2:49 PM
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