Danish Maastricht Treaty referendum, 1992

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Danish Maastricht Treaty referendum%2C 1992
Results by county Yes No Danish Maastricht Treaty referendum results by county, 1992.png
Results by county
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A referendum on the Maastricht Treaty was held in Denmark on 2 June 1992. [1] It was rejected by 50.7% of voters with a turnout of 83.1%. [2] The rejection was considered somewhat of a blow to the process of European integration, although the process continued. The result of the referendum, along with the "petit oui" in the French Maastricht referendum are considered to be signals of the end of the "permissive consensus" on European integration which had existed in most of continental Europe until then. From this point forward issues relating to European integration were subject to much greater scrutiny across much of Europe, and overt euroscepticism gained prominence. [3] Only France, Denmark and Ireland held referendums on Maastricht ratification.

Maastricht Treaty treaty that created the European Union

The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 by the members of the European Community in Maastricht, Netherlands to further European integration. On 9–10 December 1991, the same city hosted the European Council which drafted the treaty. The treaty founded the European Union and established its pillar structure which stayed in place until the Lisbon Treaty came into force in 2009. The treaty also greatly expanded the competences of the EEC/EU and led to the creation of the single European currency, the euro.

Denmark constitutional monarchy in Europe

Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Nordic country and the southernmost of the Scandinavian nations. Denmark lies southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and is bordered to the south by Germany. The Kingdom of Denmark also comprises two autonomous constituent countries in the North Atlantic Ocean: the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark proper consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand, Funen and the North Jutlandic Island. The islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate. Denmark has a total area of 42,924 km2 (16,573 sq mi), land area of 42,394 km2 (16,368 sq mi), and the total area including Greenland and the Faroe Islands is 2,210,579 km2 (853,509 sq mi), and a population of 5.8 million.

European integration process of industrial, political, legal, economic, social and cultural integration of states wholly or partially in Europe

European integration is the process of industrial, political, legal, economic, social and cultural integration of states wholly or partially in Europe. European integration has primarily come about through the European Union and its policies.

Contents

As the Maastricht Treaty could only come into effect if all members of the European Union ratified it, the Edinburgh Agreement, negotiated in the months following the referendum, provided Denmark with four exceptions which eventually led to Denmark ratifying the Maastricht Treaty in a 1993 referendum.

European Union Economic and poitical union of states located in Europe

The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe. It has an area of 4,475,757 km2 (1,728,099 sq mi) and an estimated population of about 513 million. The EU has developed an internal single market through a standardised system of laws that apply in all member states in those matters, and only those matters, where members have agreed to act as one. EU policies aim to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital within the internal market, enact legislation in justice and home affairs and maintain common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. For travel within the Schengen Area, passport controls have been abolished. A monetary union was established in 1999 and came into full force in 2002 and is composed of 19 EU member states which use the euro currency.

Edinburgh Agreement (1992)

The Edinburgh Agreement or Edinburgh Decision is a December 1992 agreement reached at a European Council meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, that granted Denmark four exceptions to the Maastricht Treaty so that it could be ratified by Denmark. This was necessary because, without all member states of the European Union ratifying it, it could not come into effect. Denmark had first rejected the Maastricht treaty, but with the addition of the Edinburgh Agreement, ratified the treaty in a 1993 referendum. The member states that had already ratified the Maastricht Treaty did not have to do so again.

Results

ChoiceVotes%
For1,606,44249.3
Against1,653,28950.7
Invalid/blank votes30,879–
Total3,290,610100
Source: Nohlen & Stöver

By county

RegionForAgainstInvalid/
blank		TotalRegistered
voters		Turnout
Votes%Votes%
Copenhagen & Frederiksberg Municipality 137,57838.3221,51561.73,552362,645444,17481.6
Copenhagen County 191,95448.9200,45851.13,125395,537458,56286.3
Frederiksborg County 117,36753.5101,99046.51,787221,144258,23985.6
Roskilde County 74,09251.669,42348.41,159144,674167,29786.5
West Zealand County 87,20848.692,08451.41,659180,951219,31382.5
Storstrøm County 80,28848.485,69251.61,732167,712200,87583.5
Bornholm County 13,47449.313,87550.744027,78935,02079.4
Fyn County 141,62648.1152,99951.92,878297,503358,27783.0
South Jutland County 83,59654.171,05245.91,468156,116189,09482.6
Ribe 71,33753.761,57646.31,374134,287165,30381.2
Vejle County 108,60251.9100,49548.12,051211,148254,98482.8
Ringkjøbing County 94,08257.569,63942.51,763165,484200,50182.5
Århus County 187,21948.7197,13051.33,543387,892463,04483.8
Viborg County 75,39253.665,22246.41,629142,243174,35781.6
North Jutland County 142,62748.7150,13951.32,719295,485372,96579.2
Source: European Election Database

Opt-outs

The opt-outs are outlined in the Edinburgh Agreement and concern the EMU (as above), the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) and the citizenship of the European Union. With these opt-outs the Danish people accepted the treaty in a second referendum held in 1993.

Common Security and Defence Policy Defence policy of the European Union

The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is the European Union's (EU) course of action in the fields of defence and crisis management, and a main component of the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).

Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters pillar of the European Union

Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters (PJCC) was the third of the three pillars of the European Union (EU). It was named Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) before 1999. The pillar existed between 1993 and 2009, when it was absorbed into a consolidated European Union structure and became the area of freedom, security and justice.

Citizenship of the European Union (EU) is afforded to qualifying citizens of European Union member states. It was given to the citizens of member states by the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, at the same time as the European Community was gaining its own legal identity. The treaty established a direct legal relationship between that new legal identity and its citizens by establishing a directly elected European Parliament and the ability for citizens to bring cases directly to the ECJ, and has been in force since 1993. European Union citizenship is additional to national citizenship. EU citizenship affords rights, freedoms and legal protections to all of its citizens.

The EMU opt-out meant Denmark was not obliged to participate in the third phase of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism, i.e. to replace the Danish krone with the euro. The abolition of the euro opt-out was put to a referendum in 2000 and was rejected. The CSDP opt-out originally meant Denmark would not be obliged to join the Western European Union (which originally handled the defence tasks of the EU). Now it means that Denmark does not participate in the European Union's foreign policy where defence is concerned. Hence it does not take part in decisions, does not act in that area and does not contribute troops to missions conducted under the auspices of the European Union. The JHA opt-out exempts Denmark from certain areas of home affairs. Significant parts of these areas were transferred from the third European Union pillar to the first under the Amsterdam Treaty; Denmark's opt-outs from these areas were kept valid through additional protocols. Acts made under those powers are not binding on Denmark except for those relating to Schengen, which are instead conducted on an intergovernmental basis with Denmark. The citizenship opt-out stated that European citizenship did not replace national citizenship; this opt-out was rendered meaningless when the Amsterdam Treaty adopted the same wording for all members. Under the Treaty of Lisbon, Denmark can change its opt-out from a complete opt-out to the case-by-case opt-in version applying to Ireland and the United Kingdom whenever they wish. [4]

European Exchange Rate Mechanism European system to reduce exchange rate variability prior to the Euro

The European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) was a system introduced by the European Economic Community on 13 March 1979, as part of the European Monetary System (EMS), to reduce exchange rate variability and achieve monetary stability in Europe, in preparation for Economic and Monetary Union and the introduction of a single currency, the euro, which took place on 1 January 1999.

Danish krone official currency of Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands

The krone is the official currency of Denmark, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands, introduced on 1 January 1875. Both the ISO code "DKK" and currency sign "kr." are in common use; the former precedes the value, the latter in some contexts follows it. The currency is sometimes referred to as the Danish crown in English, since krone literally means crown. Historically, krone coins have been minted in Denmark since the 17th century.

Aftermath

The June Movement, a Danish eurosceptic party and political organization was founded immediately after the referendum, and takes its name from the event.

The June Movement was a Danish Eurosceptic political organisation founded 23 August 1992. It took its name from the referendum on the Maastricht Treaty that took place in Denmark in June of that year. The movement was a member of the European political party EUDemocrats - Alliance for a Europe of Democracies.

Related Research Articles

Western European Union former international organisation and military alliance

The Western European Union (WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 Treaty of Brussels. The WEU implemented the Modified Brussels Treaty. The WEU member states were also allies of the United States during the Cold War through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

European Communities

The European Communities (EC), sometimes referred to as the European Community, were three international organizations that were governed by the same set of institutions. These were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Atomic Energy Community, and the European Economic Community (EEC); the last of which was renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993 by the Maastricht Treaty, which formed the European Union.

Treaty of Amsterdam

The Treaty of Amsterdam, officially the Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty on European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts, was signed on 2 October 1997, and entered into force on 1 May 1999; it made substantial changes to the Treaty of Maastricht, which had been signed in 1992.

Three pillars of the European Union

Between 1993 and 2009, the European Union (EU) legally comprised three pillars. This structure was introduced with the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993, and was eventually abandoned on 1 December 2009 upon the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, when the EU obtained a consolidated legal personality.

  1. The European Communities pillar handled economic, social and environmental policies. It comprised the European Community (EC), the European Coal and Steel Community, and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM).
  2. The Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) pillar took care of foreign policy and military matters.
  3. Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters (PJCCM) brought together co-operation in the fight against crime. This pillar was originally named Justice and Home Affairs (JHA)
Referendums related to the European Union Wikimedia list article

This is a list of referendums related to the European Union, or referendums related to the European Communities, which were predecessors of the European Union. Since 1972, a total of 48 referendums have been held by EU member states, candidate states, and their territories, with several additional referendums held in countries outside of the EU. The referendums have been held most commonly on the subject of whether to become a member of European Union as part of the accession process, although the EU does not require any candidate country to hold a referendum to approve membership or as part of treaty ratification. Other EU-related referendums have been held on the adoption of the euro and on participation in other EU-related policies.

History of the European Communities (1973–1993)

Between 1973 and 1993 the European Communities saw the first enlargement of the Communities and increasing integration under the Delors Commission leading to the creation of the European Union in 1993.

1992 French Maastricht Treaty referendum

A referendum on the Maastricht Treaty was held in France on 20 September 1992. It was approved by only 51% of the voters. The result of the referendum, known as the "petit oui", along with the Danish "No" vote are considered to be signals of the end of the "permissive consensus" on European integration which had existed in most of continental Europe until then. From this point forward issues relating to European integration were subject to much greater scrutiny across much of Europe, and overt euroscepticism gained prominence. Only France, Ireland and Denmark held referendums on Maastricht ratification.

1993 Danish Maastricht Treaty referendum

A second referendum on the Maastricht Treaty was held in Denmark on 18 May 1993. After rejecting the treaty in a referendum the previous year, this time it was approved by 56.7% of voters with an 86.5% turnout.

Opt-outs in the European Union

In general, the law of the European Union is valid in all of the twenty-eight European Union member states. However, occasionally member states negotiate certain opt-outs from legislation or treaties of the European Union, meaning they do not have to participate in certain policy areas. Currently, four states have such opt-outs: United Kingdom, Denmark, Republic of Ireland and Poland.

Denmark holds opt-outs from European Union policies in relation to security and defence, citizenship, police and justice, and the adoption of the euro. They were secured under the Edinburgh Agreement in 1992 after a referendum for the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty was rejected by Danish voters, as a package of measure to assuage concerns raised during that referendum.

Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland To permit the state to ratify the Treaty of Lisbon

The Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Act 2009 is an amendment of the Constitution of Ireland which permitted the state to ratify the Treaty of Lisbon of the European Union. It was approved by referendum on 2 October 2009.

Treaty of Lisbon International agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union

The Treaty of Lisbon is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon was signed by the EU member states on 13 December 2007, and entered into force on 1 December 2009. It amends the Maastricht Treaty (1993), known in updated form as the Treaty on European Union (2007) or TEU, and the Treaty of Rome (1957), known in updated form as the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (2007) or TFEU. It also amends the attached treaty protocols as well as the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM).

On 21 June 2002, the Irish Government made a National Declaration at the Seville European Council emphasising its commitment to the European Union's security and defence policy.

Permanent Structured Cooperation

The Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) is the part of the European Union's (EU) security and defence policy (CSDP) in which 25 of the 28 national armed forces pursue structural integration. Based on Article 42.6 and Protocol 10 of the Treaty on European Union, introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009, PESCO was first initiated in 2017. The initial integration within the PESCO format is a number of projects planned to launch in 2018.

Denmark and the European Union

Denmark in the European Union refers to the historical and current issues of Denmark's membership in the European Union. Denmark has a permanent representation to the European Union led by ambassador Jeppe Tranholm-Mikkelsen, in Brussels. The current Foreign Minister and Minister for European Affairs is Anders Samuelsen.

Treaties of the European Union treaty on European Union and treaty on the functioning of the European Union

The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties between the European Union (EU) member states which sets out the EU's constitutional basis. They establish the various EU institutions together with their remit, procedures and objectives. The EU can only act within the competences granted to it through these treaties and amendment to the treaties requires the agreement and ratification of every single signatory.

References

  1. ↑ Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p525 ISBN   978-3-8329-5609-7
  2. ↑ Eu-oplysningen.dk (in Danish)
  3. ↑ Harmsen, Robert and Menno Spiering, eds. Euroscepticism: Party Politics, National Identity and European Integration. Amsterdam: Radopi B.V., 2004. p. 25.
  4. ↑ Europolitics (2007-11-07). "Treaty of Lisbon — Here is what changes!" (PDF). Europolitics № 3407. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-11-27. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
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