Abstract
Estonia joined the EU on 1 May 2004 and immediately participated in the June 2004 European Parliament (EP) elections. It is a strong supporter of EU policies which encourage economic competitiveness and continue the deregulation and liberalisation of the internal market. There is a particular commitment towards enhancing integration in order to make the EU more competitive on a global basis. Estonia originally planned to join the euro-zone on 1 January 2007, but entry was repeatedly delayed as it failed to meet the tough inflation criteria. The decision to enforce particularly strict inflation rules was criticised by some as unduly harsh, as the other Maastricht criteria had been met easily. Estonia had performed spectacularly well since independence, evolving into a free market economy which was ranked seventeenth by the World Bank’s 2007 Ease of Doing Business index. The current target for eurozone membership is 2011 (Buiter and Sibert, 2006).
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References
Buiter, W. and A. Sibert (2006) ‘The Inflation Criterion for Eurozone Membership: What to Do When You Fail to Meet It’, Cambridge: Mass.: The National Bureau of Economic Research, last accessed 15 July 2009.
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Tubalkain-Trell, M. (8 June 2009) ‘Tarand’s Election Campaign Cost EEK 40,000’, Baltic Business News, last accessed 15 July 2009.
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© 2010 Jerry Mayer
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Mayer, T. (2010). Estonia. In: Lodge, J. (eds) The 2009 Elections to the European Parliament. EU Election Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230297272_10
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230297272_10
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
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