Code 23282
Level of study Third/Final year
Credit value 10
Semester SEMESTER 1
Pre-requisite modules None
Other pre-requisites None
The 21st century brings with it a new phase in the policy approach of the European Union towards the problem of uneven territorial development. Successive enlargements have meant the widening of regional disparities but, with budget constraints and the enlargement of the EU, it means that the Structural Funds for regional business development are spread more thinly, making it more difficult for the European Commission to secure balanced economic and employment growth in Europe in an increasingly globalised world. Alongside this the EU faces the debt and deficit crisis in the EuroZone, leading to questions about the future of the EU. Introducing students to the economic and political dynamics of the European Union, the module critically questions the extent to which the EU can integrate and be like the single market of the USA. In this Semester 1 module, beginning with a look at the state of the European economy, students will learn about the establishment of the EU and its institutions, and will explore a number of related industrial, competition and labour market and employment policy issues, including Economic and Monetary Union, as the EU strives to secure the economic development and growth of the EU economy. In the Semester 2 module, which this module is linked to, students study member state economies, including those of the Central and Eastern European countries, to look at the nature of the problem of uneven regional development in the European Union and to learn about the Structural Funds and the extent to which they can secure economic, social and territorial cohesion in an integrating Europe.