This thesis takes up the mantle of studying the Constitutional Treaty in the context of European Integration. This work examines how constitutionalization affected the process of European integration in relation to the democratic legitimacy of the European Union. Albert O. Hirschman&#039 / s Exit, Voice and Loyalty paradigm is used to assess and define the process of constitutionalization in the context of the supranational and intergovernmental tendencies of the European construct which birthed the democratic deficit in its foundational period. Special focus is allotted to the role of the European elites in drafting the Constitutional Treaty which was the culmination of their attempts to compensate for the foundational lack of democratic legitimacy. In order to make this assessment this thesis delineates the history of European integration. Furthermore, this work examines the European constitutional drive and evaluates the implications of the failed ratification process in correlation to the aforementioned issues. In conclusion this thesis maintains that the future feasibility of the constitutional project is directly related to the degree of democratic legitimacy achieved by the whole of the European Union.

This thesis looks at how European Single Currency (EURO) that began circulating on January 2002 as a legal tender will affect the European integration process. Because money has been accepted as one of the founding elements of a state for centuries, whether the Euro will be effective in the direction of a probable &ldquo / United States of Europe&rdquo / or not? Firstly, theoretical and historical roots of European integration are explained in the thesis as the basis of economic integration. The foundation, the stages and institutional mechanism of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) is looked at throughout the thesis with the theories of Regional Economic Integration and Optimum Currency Areas (OCA). The thesis reaches the conclusion that economic integration may gradually bring about the need for political integration in the EU, but not necessarily.

The thesis builds up on the significance of the social aspect of the statistics giving direct reference to the standards of the European Union (EU) on statistics. The study concentrates on the modernization, reformation and transformation process of the Turkish Statistical System, particularly the health statistics on the basis of a specific Programme called &ldquo / Upgrading the Statistical System of Turkey&rdquo / funded by the EU and the Law on Turkish Statistics (No: 5429) within the process of the harmonization of the Turkish Statistical System, which aims the integration of the current system to the international one via the EU acquis communautaire. This thesis presents the causes of the death statistics as one of the most significant dimensions of statistics since it is the most extensive and the oldest public health surveillance system in the world. The reformation in the certification process, the classification stage and the analysis of the cause of the death statistics (COD) are examined in detail hereby. Improvement of the coverage, introduction of the International Classification of Diseases-10th Revision (ICD-10), development of institutional coordination and a new formation of the causes of death statistics in line with the EU requirements are analyzed in depth. Based on the findings of this study, it is proposed that the introduction of ICD-10 and improvement of the coverage of the COD statistics are not sufficient to ameliorate the shortcomings of the current death certificate system rested upon on the two documents including the &ldquo / COD forms&rdquo / and the &ldquo / burial licence&rdquo / in Turkey. The study also suggests that solutions to be proposed should be radical and effective since the problems encountered in the death certificate system are deep-rooted. Consequently, with regard to the issues of increasing the coverage of physical autopsy and providing training for the COD forms and with the aim of reducing diversified and complex chain of bureaucratic transactions, it is essential to bring an encompassing new legal base for the current death certificate system.

This thesis aims to analyze the identity building dimension of the process of European integration and to examine how the Community cultural policy has been constructed by investigating the general discourse produced by the Community institutions since the 1970s in order to inculcate a sense of belonging among European citizens, to give an emotional aspect to the integration process, and to overcome the legitimacy problem. The themes of &ldquo / unity&rdquo / and &ldquo / diversity,&rdquo / enshrined in the official motto of &ldquo / unity in diversity&rdquo / of the European Commission, constitute the cornerstone of the Community cultural policy. This thesis analyzes the embodiment of European identity in the Community cultural policy with a special focus on three selected areas: audiovisual, educational and language policies. In conclusion, this thesis maintains that the mild, abstract and ambiguous notion of &ldquo / unity in diversity&rdquo / that accommodates heterogeneous European cultures and characteristics in conformity with the multi-layered EU polity is the most plausible and desirable mode of European cultural identity for the EU bureaucratic elites. However, this identity building strategy has limitations stemming from the intrinsic nature of the EU and the absence of a coherent definition of European identity.

This thesis aims to analyze the ideology of the &ldquo / European New Right&rdquo / (Nouveille Droite) and its attempt to establish its cultural hegemony on European integration. The revival of the radical right-wing parties after 1980s and the rise of xenophobia have emerged as a fundamental threat to European democracy. The study of such developments and the measures taken to combat right-wing extremism, however, should not be limited to political parties and activists. The intellectual framework of the contemporary radical right as a successor of historical fascism and its Europeanization necessitates a broader and deeper analysis of the ideology of the radical right. The case of &ldquo / European New Right&rdquo / as one of the most influential right-wing intellectual networks provides the appropriate ground to discuss on such framework and to elaborate its impact on European integration.

This research aims to relate the modern Swedish curriculum development to the political discourses liberalization and European integration through a critical discourse analysis of the Swedish curriculum Gy2011. These political discourses constitute the cultural context of Gy2011, which according to critical discourse theory is synonymous with the terms social sphere or praxis. The term cultural context includes the environment in which the text has been created as well as its intertextuality – in this case its relations to earlier curricula. The analysis of Gy2011 exhumes scientific research done in the field of curriculum studies, which enables future research. The Gy2011 analysis shows that the political discourses liberalization and European integration stands out within the texts cultural context, and have done so for more than 70 years, a fact that is illustrated by an overview of Swedish curricula history. This research also illuminates how the liberalization discourse accelerated during the 1980’s, by both social democrats and the political right, and that the European integration process has gained momentum in recent years.

The member countries of the enlarged European Union show large differences in the structure of their tax systems. While consumption taxes have been largely harmonized over the past decades, differences remain in taxes on factor incomes, in particular on capital income. Also, effective tax rates on capital income in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC) have been falling substantially over the last decade- a trend that may suggest that some tax competition has taken place in the enlarged European Union. The contribution of this paper is twofold. First, it presents and contrasts effective tax rates of Western European countries with those of the CEEC. Second, from a theoretical aspect, it presents a model framework within which a quantitative macroeconomic analysis of tax competition between the two regions can be conducted. In addition the model suggests that part of the large real exchange rate appreciation and current account deficits that CEE countries have experienced during the last decade might be attributed to effects from tax competition. (author's abstract) / Series: Discussion Papers SFB International Tax Coordination

This thesis analyzes the transformation of the European Nation State and the effects of the discourses on Europeanization and Governance on the European Union Integration process. European policies had penetrated into the political systems of its member states as a result of European Integration process. As a result, discourses on Europeanization changed domestic political structures and modes of governance. This process of Europeanization requires a new system of governance and the recent debates are shaped on this discourse.

This thesis analyses the role of the European Court of Justice in the process of European integration. The role of the Court of Justice as an important supranational institution is discussed by taking into account various decisions of the Court that established the fundamental principles of the European Union Law. The thesis also analyses the contribution of the Court from the perspective of its interactions with the other actors within the EU. In this framework, the thesis will seek to answer such questions as: What are the contributions of the European Court in the development of the EU legal system? How did the Court play such an important role in the process of European integration? Finally, how did the interactions of the European Court with the other actors affect the process of European integration?

In Folge der Osterweiterung der europäischen Union (EU) und der steigenden Arbeitsmarktintegration zwischen den EU15 und den neuen Mitgliedsstaaten ist die Lohnfindung in Mittel- und Osteuropa zu einem Schwerpunkt der europäischer Wirtschaftspolitik geworden. Zugleich wird das optimale Wechselkursregime für mittel- und osteuropäische Staaten kontrovers diskutiert. Die Dissertation befasst sich mit der Fragestellung, welche Wechselkursstrategie in Mittel- und Osteuropa vorzuziehen ist, um zum einen den Lohnfindungsprozess zu optimieren und zum anderen den Anpassungsprozess (Konvergenzprozess) an europäische Lohnstandards zu beschleunigen. Diese kumulierte Arbeit besteht aus vier unabhängigen Fachaufsätzen. Zuerst wird der Frage nachgegangen, welche Wechselkursstrategie einen optimalen Rahmen für die Lohnsetzung während des Aufholprozesses mittel- und osteuropäischer Staaten ermöglicht (Kapitel zwei). Im Kapitel drei wird die Rolle der Geldpolitik in Bezug auf die Lohnfindung in Staaten mit flexiblen Wechselkursen untersucht. Die Evaluierung der Prognosefähigkeit alternativer Konjunkturindikatoren für die Euro Zone sowie deren Implikationen für den Lohnverhandlungsprozess in Mittel-und Osteuropa ist Gegenstand der Analyse in Kapitel vier. Im fünften Kapitel wird der Rolle der Lohnpolitik auf Leistungsbilanz(un)gleichgewichte in Mittel- und Osteuropa nachgegangen. / After the Eastern enlargement of the European Union (EU) and increasing participation of labor between the EU15 and the new member states, wage determination in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) has become a key issue in European economic policy making. At the same time there are controversial discussions regarding the appropriate exchange rate regime for the CEE countries. In this thesis it is examined which exchange rate strategy provides a more favorable framework for wage setting in CEE and leads to faster wage convergence in Europe. This thesis has four parts. First, it is analyzed which exchange rate strategy provides a more favorable framework for wage setting during the economic catch-up process of CEE (section two). Second, the role of monetary policy in wage determination in countries with flexible exchange rate regimes is examined in section three. Third, the predictive power of different euro area business cycle indicators is analyzed in section four. Fourth, the impact of wage determination on the balance of payments in CEE is scrutinized (section five).