Assignment 5.

European Union Policies

This report will evaluate the minor ‘European Union Policies’. It will provide an introduction of the minor, the main topics discussed and my personal opinion about the minor in general. To conclude, some recommendations will be given.

 

Introduction

The minor European Union Policies (EUP) gets you integrated in the international body called ‘Europe’. It makes you aware of the importance of such an entity and makes you understand which advantages and disadvantages are involved concerning the member states and its citizens. 

 

The content

Looking to the content of the minor, I think it provided us with useful information to make us understand how important Europe really is. First of all it was made clear how the EU got established. Think of the first Treaty, the Treaty of Paris, all the way to the Lisbon Treaty that still needs to be signed. This part of history was interesting as it clarified how and why this international organization originally started and developed.

Furthermore, it was told how the European Union is structured. Think of the institutions involved, its functions and the areas in which they operate. I noticed myself that not many people in my direct environment are aware of the way the EU works and how it influenced and still influences their lives. In addition, if you see which aims Europe has achieved and can achieve by being such a strong unit of different countries next to e.g. the USA, Japan and Russia it makes you interested to get more involved.

Also the legislation and the decision-making process of the EU are discussed. Think of the areas on which the member states cooperate, the various rules that apply for all members and how the legislation concerned is created, adopted and controlled.

To conclude, the excursion of 4 days, which has shown us some of the various institutions of the EU, was an interesting and fun experience. After all the theory provided during the lessons it was good to see where exactly happens. Personally, I found it especially interesting to hear how the European Investment Bank (EIB), located in Luxembourg, operates and selects projects to invest in that need to make the EU member states stronger.

 

Personal opinion and recommendations

I think this minor was a very interesting one. As already mentioned before, it made clear how important Europe is in the world and how it influences the daily lives of all EU citizens. This also raises your awareness of the direct influence on your personal life. In addition, I think getting familiar with the EU is important for each student that likes to work in an international company to know what is possible and accepted and what is not.

The only recommendation I can make is to make more use of the free hours that students have available next to the few hours spend to this minor. There is so much time left to study other subjects or to gain more knowledge on other areas. Think for example of one larger assignment to raise a European company and to find out how the EU could influence your international way of doing business. 

Assignment 4.

Freezing student grants

The new government budget, which was made known on the 15th September, revealed the plans of the government to freeze student grants for two years starting from 2011. This involves that student grants will not be adapted to the yearly inflation in this period.

Until now, the grants of students yearly increased with approximately €10 to cover the increasing costs of living and education. Due to the financial crisis and the lowering public treasury, savings need to be made on government’s spending. Freezing the student grants is a clear example which will save up to €18 million.

 

Consequences

As mentioned before, freezing student grants will make it harder for students to cover their living and educational expenses. Consequently, and especially for the poorer students, this might cause financial problems and make it impossible for them to continue or start a study.

In addition to the student grants also other measures were taken in the past few years to save government expenditure. For example, the government decided to increase the tuition fee with €200 and to abolish the entitled tuition fee for people with a second study. All of these measures put pressure on the accessibility of studies in the higher education.

 

Personal view

Personally, I do understand that savings need to be made on government expenditure as the costs for the Dutch treasury are increasing. Think for example to citizens who got unemployed during the crisis and need financial compensation, and the lowering tax income of the state as industries make less profit. Nevertheless, I do think it is important to invest in the future and students are part of this. The more students are able to enjoy a proper education the more chances this will create for the Netherlands to get back on track and to grow in the future. The students of today are the representatives of the future and for this reason I wonder whether it is smart freeze student grants.

 

Other possibilities

The Dutch student organisation LSVb (Landelijke Studentenvakbond) came up with some alternatives with the hope that also students will get motivated to come up with solutions. An example is the ‘study tax’. This alternative involves giving students proper grants to cover the costs of living and education and let them pay for it via extra taxes if they start to work.

Secondly, the government should conduct more supervision on the parents of students. Parents with studying children are legally obliged to support their children financially to let them study. Currently, it is not made sure that this also happens. The government provides student grants but expects parents to contribute to the costs of their children’s’ study as well. Better supervision should ensure that parents really contribute.