The European Union After Enlargement

This briefing by the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) analyzes the challenges facing the European Union (EU) following its expansion to 25 members on 1 May 2004. The author, Erik Jones, examines the institutional, political, and financial pressures resulting from enlargement, specifically focusing on decision-making, diversity, and the redistribution of resources.

• The expansion of the EU to 25 members on 1 May 2004 introduced three primary categories of challenges: decision-making, diversity, and redistribution. Decision-making is hindered by the size of the group, unwieldy institutions, and a reliance on informal practices that require member state representatives to maintain autonomy from domestic constituencies.
• Diversity within the EU varies by policy area. It is least problematic in market competition and common external commercial policy due to the acquis communautaire. It is more problematic regarding welfare state institutions, tax regimes, and corporate governance. It is most critical in 'Justice and Home Affairs' and 'Common Foreign and Security Policy', which rely on unanimous decision-making.
• The EU has attempted to manage diversity in economic structural reform through the Lisbon strategy (March 2000), which utilizes an 'open method of co-ordination'. This allows member states to tailor reform strategies to their own institutional and political requirements while the EU monitors and encourages progress.
• Redistribution presents a significant financial challenge because accession countries are generally less wealthy per capita and often have large agricultural sectors. This triggers massive transfers from net-contributing existing member states to new members via regional development funds and the common agricultural policy (CAP).
• Financial agreements for new members include a requirement that they contribute as full members to EU coffers immediately, though their direct payments for agricultural support are phased in. In 2004, these payments were set at 25% of the EU level, increasing by 5% increments to 2007 and 10% increments until 2013.
• There is a conflict regarding the overall EU budget ceiling. Six major net contributors, including Britain, France, and Germany, requested that resources not exceed 1% of gross national income (GNI). However, the European Commission's February 2004 financial prospective proposed allocations averaging 1.14% of GNI for 2007-2013, peaking at 1.23% in 2008.
• The author suggests that enlargement may make the EU a more coherent trading entity but a less effective negotiating partner in multilateral settings. This is because EU negotiators will have less autonomy from the diverse domestic political constituencies of a larger membership.

APA

Jones, E. (2004). The European Union After Enlargement. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Briefing6final.pdf

Chicago

Jones, Erik. The European Union After Enlargement. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2004. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Briefing6final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Jones |first1=Erik |title=The European Union After Enlargement |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=October 2004 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Briefing6final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{jones2004european, author = {Jones, Erik}, title = {{The European Union After Enlargement}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2004}, month = oct, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Briefing6final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }