Countries Should Be Allowed to Leave or Forced to Leave the EU - Essay Example

The paper "Countries Should Be Allowed to Leave or Forced to Leave the EU" is an outstanding example of an essay on category. European Union is an association of twenty-seven countries, mostly European countries with an aim to strengthen their political and economic powers and it was refined in 1993 in a treaty called the Maastricht Treaty (Verdun). The EU has a standard currency called the Euro which can be used in any member state. The union has established a standardized market and created a free environment for the migration of people within the state without passport control.

Countries should be allowed to leave the EU if it is for their own interest that they do so. This argument is supported by the fact that a member of the Union can encounter some problems, which can be avoided if the country quit membership. A country should be given the freedom to quit the European Union if it is in the interest of the people. European Union membership is costly and if the member states should decide to free themselves from this financial burden, they should be allowed to quit. Policies adopted by the European Union affect member states. Some of these policies may disadvantage a country. A move to set a minimum price for agricultural goods can be unpopular and it can force consumers to pay more than what they would have paid in a free market. Should a country wish to free its citizens from these economic policies, the EU should allow them to withdraw their membership. Citizens of the member states have also lost their national sovereignty to the union, and they identify themselves more with the European Union Economic territory more than they do with their own country.

The use of common currency is another issue that member states struggle with; moreover, the common monetary policy for Euro users involves setting up a common interest rate (Philip 48). These rates are favorable for some countries and unfavorable for others, therefore, if the policy is set to reduce inflation by charging a high-interest rate, countries with recessions will be disfavored. The Euro also cannot be devalued by a single government, in an effort to make exports competitive. Being a member of the European Union, therefore, limits the government’s power in the application of fiscal policies. Free migration of labor and capital within the Euro member state can create labor completion and overcrowding of labor markets. This movement of people can cause other problems associated such as traffic jams and a rise in the cost of housing. If a country should wish to avoid this migration by quitting the Union, it should be allowed to do so. In some instances, countries may be forced to leave the union, thus, if a member state disintegrates, it should be forced to leave the union, and register afresh if it wants to continue with the membership.

However, there are reasons why countries should not be allowed to change membership. Changing the membership of a member state, say UK means that other members of the European Union will not enjoy free immigration to the UK, free exchange of labor and capital. This could affect companies that are established in the region, which base their market on the common region; therefore, the withdrawal should be regulated. The union also creates a great platform for diplomacy and therefore avoiding conflict and gives collective security to members. Withdrawal of a country, however, cannot make a company lose all its sales, because it can concentrate its trade in the remaining member countries furthermore, the company can still do business in those countries, which have withdrawn provided the follow the law of the country they wish to trade-in. Friendly countries can still help one another during the time of war, whether or not they are both members of a Union.

Members of the European Union should, therefore, be allowed to withdraw membership at will because it is democratic to do so. Membership for the union comes with many advantages, but still, a county should decide what is best for its citizens and arrive at a decision accordingly.