Part VI Monetary Unions and other Forms of Monetary Organization, 31 The Euro and Monetary Sovereignty

Subject(s):

Euro Regulations — Eurozone — Exchange control — Monetary obligations — Monetary union — Bank of England — European Central Bank — Federal Reserve System (‘Fed’)

This chapter assesses the effect of the euro on monetary sovereignty. The process of monetary union has, without question, resulted in the transfer of national monetary sovereignty from Member States to entities subsisting within the framework of the Treaties. Indeed, for a number of years, the perceived desire to preserve sovereignty in this area lay at the heart of the continuing political debate about the United Kingdom’s (non-)membership of the eurozone. The chapter then looks at the transfer of monetary sovereignty by the eurozone Member States, as well as the exercise of monetary sovereignty within the eurozone. It also considers the relationship between monetary sovereignty, the European Central Bank (ECB), and the Union. Finally, the chapter discusses the position of the United Kingdom and its own monetary sovereignty, before examining the relationship of monetary sovereignty with the federal State and exchange controls.