The European Union is the world's newest superpower. With just six percent of its population, it accounts for more than one fourth of global economic wealth and more than one-third of global trade. Its governing bodies have won growing powers, there is an expanding body of European law, and the EU is active in policies ranging from agriculture to the environment, transport, communications and police cooperation. There are even some who see the EU as the foundation of a united Europe, and argue that its 15 member states are now better understood as part of the EU than as individual countries.Since its publication in 1995, The European Union: Politics and Policies has made its mark as the most thorough and readable introduction to the history, institutions and policies of the EU. Balancing description with analysis, and offering multiple examples of the ways in which the EU has changed Europe and the lives of Europeans, it has become an essential guide for anyone wanting to understand the structure and impact of the EU.This second edition has been completely updated and thoroughly revised to take account of recent developments. It incorporates all the changes coming out of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam, the launch of the euro in 1999, and the debate over eastern enlargement, and discusses prospects for the EU in the opening years of the twenty-first century.