Corporation Finance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Enterprise Finance - Assignment Example These organizations are focused on inferable from regularly developing interest for metals in view of its high worth that has continually take off particularly iron and aluminum, that up to introduce is being reused at whatever point conceivable because of the estimation of their physical and compound qualities. The Business will be critical to its customers (handling organizations) as it will spare them vitality and assets in gathering and treating the piece metals. 1.3 MAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION PLAN Eco-Super Scrap Metals LTD the executives will comprise of numerous workers and independently employed people shrunk by the organization. Notwithstanding, the official supervisory crew will comprise of head supervisor, bookkeeper, easygoing workers and lasting and pensionable representatives such mentors, chiefs and organizers, who will man the destinations and preparing different workers on wellbeing and security of when working inside the organization. 1.4 OPERATIONAL AND PRODUCTION P LAN The reason and other fundamental utilities, for example, operational administrations like power will be procured on rental premise rental bill being paid on month to month footing. In any case, the business apparatus and fix resources, for example, treatment plants and other fundamental gear like PCs, printers, scanner and furniture will be claimed by the business as the underlying capital fixed resources. 1.5 FINANCIAL PLAN The beginning Capital will be $1,000,000 comprehensive of operational capital of $ 700,000. The organizations will acquire this underlying capital from owners’ individual reserve funds, adding up to $. 200,000 and a subsidizing through bank credit of $ 800,000. 2.0 BUSINESS DESCRIPTION Eco-Super Scrap Metals LTD primary business will gather the piece metals from the earth and treating these metals before exchanging them to metal handling organization. In doing as such, it will likewise be resolved to clean condition, making it security for home 2.1 Bu siness Name The business will work under the name Eco-Super Scrap Metals LTD. This business, given that it's anything but another business thought in the area, will be exposed to rivalry from different firms of comparable business. The business begins its activity not long after gathering the capabilities prerequisites forced by the guideline bodies and enlistment center of business. 2.2 Physical Location Eco-Super Scrap Metals LTD will be worry with gathering the piece metals from the structure destinations and furthermore will have a focused point for assortment in East London close to A13 motorway, to encourage simple association with the city. 2.2.1 Mission Statement The crucial the business is to gather and sell treated piece metals to metal handling firms, before it goes to landfill, and in doing as such, clean the earth for manageability for home. 2.2.2 Vision To be the main piece metal industry in the whole Europe and outside the landmass 2.2.3 Core Values I. Quality-The bus iness principle concern is on its clients and condition thus will endeavor to serve them constantly and updating the earth in its push to be amazing through assessment and nonstop improvement. ii. Proficiency Being proficient and successful in our method of activity and give the best at constantly. iii. Enthusiasm Concentrating on the work we do in both our brains and heart to give the best. iv. Responsibility Taking duty of our activities

The Destructors and Lord of the Flies

The Destructor and the Lord of the Flies Being an effective pioneer doesn't imply that you must be forceful and to utilize the intensity of power. Both, in the destructor story and Lord of the Flies tale we could discover a few similitudes in the manner how the small kids figured out how to be pioneers and to accomplish what they needed. In the Lord of the Flies we can discover two characters of two small kids that used to be pioneer. In one side we had Ralph whose point was the way to escape from the island and in the opposite side we had Jack whose anguish was the way to make sure about food.Ralph was extremely quiet and accomplished kid however he had one issue cap he couldn't figured out how to have leveled out Jack. This may be a direct result of absence of information since he was excessively youthful. Ralph thoughts of taking consideration about the fire was splendid, this is in such a case that we have a rundown of hardware's that we have to get by in such places in any case ought to be a mirror or light that would mirror the light , so that would be an opportunity for them to be distinguished from a long distance.Jack character was excessively forceful and he needed to be a pioneer and to take things leveled out, however the issue was that he didn't perceive any drawn out arrangement other than making sure about nourishment. He was not agreeable with the others and needed to control circumstance utilizing his capacity which in a large portion of cases doesn't work and this was appeared too since he began to gain power in his clan, some of them lost their lives. Toward the finish of the film we can presume that Ralph thought that he gave when he took administration was realized.Soldiers wouldn't saw them, if there were no fire on the field. In the Destructor story we can locate some different characters of little youngsters. In one side we had Blackleg who was delegated as a pioneer of a group with casting a ballot however since he didn't have any new t houghts he didn't figure out how to keep the authority. At the point when T comes and he gave his thought he promptly continue driving and he accomplished to understand his objective by dealing with the group by assigning obligations to every one of them so as to make them all involved.Finally we could state that having a smart thoughts and being imaginative and having the option to oversee and actualize in appropriate manner this is the way as a rule works as a rule yet you have to have an encounter and to have the option to monitor things. In Jacks case he demonstrated that being a pioneer and utilizing authority and force doesn't generally work and potential outcomes to fall flat are more than to win. Formed. The Destructor and Lord of the Flies By Shipped

Laboratory Evaluation Of Fibre Reinforced Soil - 9047 Words

Major Project-II Report On LABORATORY EVALUATION OF FIBRE REINFORCED SOIL Submitted in Partial Fulfillment for the Award of the Degree of MASTERS OF TECHNOLOGY IN CIVIL ENGINERING With Specialization In GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING By Swapneel Kalra (Roll No. 2K13/GTE/20) Under The Guidance Of Prof. A. K. Gupta Department of Civil Engineering Delhi Technological University, Delhi Department Of Civil Engineering Delhi Technological University, Delhi Delhi-110042 2015 DELHI TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, DELHI CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the Major Project-II Report entitled â€Å"LABORATORY EVALUATION OF FIBRE REINFORCED SOIL† is a bona fide record of work carried out by Swapneel Kalra (Roll No. 2K13/GTE/20) under my guidance and supervision, during the session 2015 in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Technology (Geotechnical Engineering) from Delhi Technological University, Delhi. The work embodied in this Major Project-II has not been submitted for the award of any other degree to the best of my knowledge. Prof. A. K. Gupta Department of Civil Engineering Delhi Technological University, Delhi Delhi-110042 2015 DELHI TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, DELHI ACKNOWLEDGEMENT As I write this acknowledgement, I must clarify that this is not just a formal acknowledgement but also a sincere note of thanks and regard from my side. I feel a deep sense ofShow MoreRelatedConcrete Materials For Building Materials Essay7548 Words   |  31 Pagesidentify the compressive strength properties of the concrete containing laterite rock as partial fine aggregate replacement. 1.4 SCOPE OF STUDY To reach the objectives of this project, several analysis and testing were carried out in the laboratory to get the results. Variables of this project are temperatures and contents of laterite rocks used as partial fine aggregate. Two types of mix have been used that is plain concrete and laterite concrete of various percentage of laterite aggregateRead MoreDesign and Construction Method for Deep Tubewells Considering Different Hydrological Parameters18168 Words   |  73 Pages4.2 Drilling Technique 15 4.3 Sample Collection 19 4.4 Sample Description 20 4.5 Sieve Analysis at Site 22 4.6 Laboratory Sieve Analysis 23 Chapter 5 Tubewell Design 25 5.1 Components of Tubewell Casing 25 5.2 Materials of Tubewell Casing 25 5.3 Historical Tubewell Design 25 Read MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 Pagesanalysis Corporate governance Stakeholder expectations Social responsibility Culture Competitive strategy Strategic options: directions Corporate-level strategy International strategy Innovation and Entrepreneurship Strategic options: methods Strategy evaluation Strategic management process Organising Resourcing Managing change Strategic leadership Strategy in practice Public sector/not-for-proï ¬ t management Small business strategy ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€" Read MoreGp Essay Mainpoints24643 Words   |  99 Pagestape† scandal entered public consciousness, copycat examples in local context: Tammy Ying sex-tape While originally not intended for public consumption, idea is arguable very exhibitionist – potential of being leaked for nothing is private anymore (reinforced by the Edison Chen scandal nude photos of ex-girlfriends, Madonna having personal contacts made publicly accessible) For 1: †¢ Behaviour we often condemn as morally degrading is part of their private lives †¢ All-invasive nature of reporters

Vocabulary Word Groups - The Mind

Health Literacy And Effective Communication - 1229 Words

Within culturally diverse population in Australia, especially for Indigenous groups than non-indigenous population, low level of health literacy has been considered as negative factor that impacting on the delivery of effective care and health professionals’ performances on medical treatment. With integrated health literacy program, culturally competent and appropriate communication at individual, systemic and organisational level would enhance health outcomes for consumer’s welfare. Most importantly, improved health literacy and effective communication skills would plays an important part for delivery on good quality with equal opportunity to access healthcare service to all class. This academic essay will examine how health literacy†¦show more content†¦Therefore, the health professional should conduct health literacy friendly educational meetings and orientations for greater control of long-term management of the disease. From Baker’s study on health literacy (2006), it depicted the health literacy as active and dynamic status which gives the consumers the essential abilities to act effectively within the healthcare system. The patient’s levels of health literacy would vary related on different circumstances whether it is relied on the health professionals at the medical procedure, the shared information that contains the type of medical diagnosis of the patient and the signs and symptoms of medical condition that patient may experience. Effective communication is particularly important for the outline of catering high quality, efficient and culturally safe care in a culturally diverse health care system. Health care worker would expect to engage in effective communication in order to provide safe and culturally appropriate health care and to achieve greater health outcomes. Effective communication depends on comprehending the consumer’s cultural differences, linguistic factor and health literacy levels. The communication skills of the person delivering the information to another, acting as a â€Å"messenger†, is critically important asShow MoreRelatedHealth Literacy : The Peoples Understanding Of Health And Health Care1589 Words   |  7 PagesHealth literacy is the peoples’ understanding of the information about health and health care. As well as how the information is applied to their lives including making decisions and representing it. Health literacy is essential to people’s lives as it form people’s health including the safety and quality of health care. For Australia, Health literacy is a significant issue. Health information and systems are becoming progressively more difficult and it is hard to understand. 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Methods: Database analysis utilized Medical Expenditure Panel Survey(MEPS) from 2005-2008 which provides national representative estimates of healthcare utilization and expeniture. Health literacy scores were calculated based on a validated predictiveRead MoreHealth Literacy1207 Words   |  5 PagesHealth literacy is a term not widely understood by the general population. It is defined as â€Å"the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information needed to make appropriate health decisions and services needed to prevent or treat illness,† (About health literacy, 2014). A person’s level of health literacy is based on their age, education level, socioeconomic standing, and cultural background. Patients with low health literacy have a moreRead MoreGuide To Living With An Ileostomy : Article Review910 Words   |  4 PagesCanadian adults aged between 20 to 50 years old, who require surgery for both inflamed bowel diseases such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, or for familial adenomatous polyposis, cancer, trauma or birth defects. According to Bastable (2014) â€Å"health promotion is the most neglected aspect young adulthood stage (20-40) readiness to learn needs to be actively fostered through experiences the nurse initiates based on individualized needs† (p.193). Bastable (2014) explains that in young adults,Read MoreAppropriate Patient Education Upon Discharge From The Emergency Department Essay1227 Words   |  5 Pages(ED) is essential for effective patient care (Engel et al., 2009; Waisman et al., 2003). Patients are treated and released from the ED, often with complicated instructions they are expected to remember and comply with. The type of discharge education varies widely including verbal, non-verbal, written, illustrated and video information given to patients depending on the health professional and hospital policies. Inadequate discharge instructio ns can result in poor health outcomes and higher healthcareRead MoreTeaching Role Of An Apn1216 Words   |  5 Pagesis patient education. Health promotion and disease prevention can be accomplished with effective communication with the patient. Patient education can be successful if the APN provides an environment that is patient-centered. This approach involves listening to the patient, allowing time for questions, assessing the health literacy of the patient and including the patient’s input when planning their treatment. Among these, health literacy, the ability to understand basic health information needed to

Essay On Cameron Auto Parts Example For Students

Essay On Cameron Auto Parts The APT allowed for tariff-free trade between the Big Three American automakers and parts suppliers and factories in both countries. The one caveat in the APT to qualify for the zero-tariff trade was that companies must maintain assembly facilities on both sides Of the border. Cameron Auto Parts specifically manufactured original equipment parts (MEMO) such as small engine parts and accessories based upon design specs created by the Auto manufacturers and then sold these parts to the auto makers. Alex Cameron took the reins in 2001 and was immediately faced with a financial crisis. Sales in 2000 had dropped to $48 million and were only $18 million for the first six months of 2001 Cameron lost $2. 5 million in 2000 and the same amount in the first six months of 2001. This decline was primarily due to declining auto sales of American cars and trucks and the increased presence of Japanese automakers. Market forces were driving the American firms to tint ways to cut sots and modernize plants. Cameron used 510 million of its $12 million credit line to reinvest back into the firm by modernizing equipment and computer- assisted design and manufacturing systems. However, Cameron did not have its own design engineering team and relied on specs from the Big Three automakers for its products This left Alex Cameron with an uneasy feeling that expansion into product design was essential for the long-term survival of the firm. In mid-2001, Cameron took the steps necessary to design and develop its own parts line. Cameron hired four design engineers and, by 2003, came up with a flexible pulling idea that would entice international buyers and not just the Big Three automakers. Cameron was then faced with the dilemma of how to market and sell the product. Projected sales Of the new product in 2004 were between $35 and $40 million which was terrific but they werent sure they had the capacity to handle the production. They needed to decide if it was better to expand current facilities, buy, build a new facility, or license the fabrication of the product to outside companies. While on a vacation trip to Scotland, Alex went to check in on a local customer, McGrath Supplies, Ltd, who convinced him that the flexible pulling product was in high demand in the U. K. And that more production was necessary to keep up with the demand. Alex decided at that meeting that Cameron would exclusively license the production tooth flexible coupling to McGrath in order to gain a stronger foothold in the ILK, for relatively little up- front investment. I _ Should Cameron have licensed McGrath or continued to export? Cameron Auto Parts should license to McGrath in the ASK. It was one of Cameramans key goals to penetrate foreign markets and the licensing agreement with McGrath old be a swift way to begin executing this business sweater. McGrath was in a superior position to penetrate the LLC. K_ market due to a good cultural understanding and close proximity to potential clients. Once this business arrangement was proven successful, Cameron Auto Parts would be able to form similar agreements with other companies and expand to other foreign markets. McGrath is an excellent licensee, as they are a reputable company in the U. K. With excellent credit, cost saving manufacturing practices, good market contacts, and 130 years of service in the business. They are also assuming most f the financial risk by paying Cameron Auto Parts the startup costs as well as a percentage of sales. Embarking on a licensing strategy would also eliminate the prohibitive cost of developing and maintaining a sales force in a foreign country that likely wouldnt perform as well as a local company like McGrath since customers had cultural ties and existing relationships with them. Bronwyn Donaghy about the facts and consequences of teenage sex EssayThis would involve dedicating a certain amount of production floor space to a market that is culturally and geographically distant and unpredictable. There is risk involved as the production space ties up cash flow and is not certain to produce profit. Travel expense would be incurred as company representatives would have to travel often to the U. K. In order to resolve issues or sell products. The sales side expense would be higher as well. More sales people would have to be employed to that region. They would either have to travel often or be based there and paid in pounds, which are currently stronger than the dollar. Instead of receiving a check from one contact that represents all sales for the whole area, Cameron would have to maintain relationships with various customers, which requires personalized attention to ACH and exposes him to having to perform collections and write off bad debt Since unit production costs were estimated to decline as annual sales climbed from $20 million to million and Andy felt that the $20 million mark was easily obtainable in the coming year, the continued value of exporting to Europe would have grown along with the European market. Looking at the pricing index, we can see that importing to Europe results in a cost of 113 to the importer. Since Cameron Auto Parts sell the flexible couplings at the same price to domestic and foreign distributors, licensing is an effective strategy to entreat the European market While eliminating import and Other logistical costs. Cameron Auto Parts would benefit most from a licensing agreement with McGrath Supplies Ltd. Other options exist besides exporting or licensing such as a joint venture / wholly-owned subsidiary, selling through an agent, or selling through a distributor. Benefits to these strategies include reduced manufacturing cost, higher sales volume, and better market penetration and in some cases shared risk. The drawbacks to these methods include loss of price control, unpredictable sales volume, and loss of profits. Ill Case Update Cameron Auto Parts enjoyed rapid growth during the 2004-2005. In 2004, the company undertook a major plant expansion for SIS million, adding 200,000 square feet to the compacts production capacity. Royalties from McGrath during the first year of the licensing agreement were EYE,OHO; this grew to and OHIO,OHO the following year. High overall profitability left Cameron in a strong financial position in 2006. In 2006, Cameron was presented With an opportunity to purchase a 40 percent interest in Misheard Ice. , a family-owned distributor organization in France, Which would allow Cameron to break into the continental European countries. Cameron agreed to the deal for $4 million and a royalty of 4 percent on sales of all flexible couplings. The deal enraged McGrath, who had been selling flexible couplings in Europe and would now be competing with Misheard.

Are The Council of Ministers and European Council Protectors of The State †Government Research Paper

Are The Council of Ministers and European Council Protectors of The State – Government Research Paper Free Online Research Papers European integration has deepened considerably in the recent years and many are predicting it to deepen even further, towards an all-embracing state of Europe in which national boundaries and cultural identities will gradually melt into one. This scenario is definitely feared by many. However, among all the institutions of the European Union, the last stronghold of national interests still stands: the Council of Ministers, the Union’s main executive and legislative power. Alongside it is the European Council, a meeting of the heads of member states, which defines the broad political direction of the Union, and is under national influence as well. Are these two institutions the protectors of state interests within the European Union? In this essay I intend to look at the organization and functions of both the Council of Ministers and the European Council. I will also examine how they interact with the rest of the European Union, and look at the functioning of the decision-making process closely to see whether the Council of Ministers protects national interests or strives for the common good of the European Union. Finally I will conclude on what I perceive as the role of the Council of Ministers and the European Council and whether they are protecting state interests within the European Union or not. The Council of Ministers The Council of Ministers was created on purely intergovernmental grounds in 1951. The national governments felt the need to limit the supranational powers that were driving the integration forward. The Council which was then created has evolved greatly since and its powers have deepened despite the growing powers of the supranational institutions within the European Union. The Council of Ministers is not one complete body, but in fact meets in several different formations, depending on the subject area being discussed. For example, the ministers of education meet among themselves as do the ministers of foreign affairs. So all in all, the Council of Ministers has sixteen different formations. There also exists an hierarchy within these different formations: â€Å"Three Councils have traditionally met on a monthly basis, and have therefore been viewed as the most ‘senior’ formations – the General Affairs Council, made up of the foreign ministers of the member governments; the Economic and Financial Affairs (Ecofin), composed of the ministers of finance or economic affairs; and the Agriculture Council.† (Hayes-Renshaw, 2002: 50). The other councils meet less frequently, but yet at least twice a year. The ministers are in these meetings strictly as the representatives of their respective governments and are authorized to commit t heir governments (Hayes-Renshaw, 2002: 51). The Council of Ministers is led by the presidency which rotates among the member states and is held up for a six-month period. Meanwhile the Secretariat-General of the Council acts as the administrative support to the Council performing also logistical and technical functions. The Secretary-General is also the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, so the tasks the Secretariat-General oversees are not to be overlooked. The Secretariat-General plays a significant role within the Council hierarchy. COREPER (Committee of Permanent Representatives) Coreper prepares the work of the Council of Ministers and is an important and integral part of the functioning of the Council. â€Å"Coreper acts as a process manager in the Council system between the ministers and the experts in the working groups.† (Cini, 2003: 157). Coreper consists of two groups: Coreper I and II. â€Å"Coreper I is made up of the deputy permanent representatives and they are responsible for preparing the so-called ‘technical’ councils.† (Cini, 2003: 157). Meanwhile, Coreper II is generally regarded the more important one and consists of the EU permanent representatives who prepare the work of the General Affairs Council and deal with issues that have broad implications. While the representatives have no formal decision-making power, they still exert a lot of influence on the ministers, and â€Å"Coreper is still an important de facto decision-making body, seen by the steady stream of ‘A points’ which are sent to the minis ters for formal adoption† (Cini, 2003: 158). Below the Coreper in hierarchy, several working groups exist: â€Å"†¦ the working group level is a vast network of national officials who specialize in specific areas and form the initial starting point for negotiations on any new proposal or issue.† (Cini, 2003: 158) They hold the specialist knowledge needed for each subject area and aim to work through all the technical and fine detail to ease the workload of ministers. The functions of the Council of Ministers Decision-making is the Council’s main function and it is in fact the European Union’s principal legislative institution. All proposals originating from the Commission must be approved by the Council. Certain decisions are taken collectively with the European Parliament through co-decision procedure, and the power of the Parliament has increased in influencing the outcome of the decisions; however the Council of Ministers still holds the main power. The decisions made collectively with the European Parliament fall under the First Pillar of the issues. Decisions within the Second and Third Pillars which consist of ‘more important’ issues such as for example foreign policy are made solely by the Council of Ministers. Within the Council decisions are made preferably through negotiation and agreements; however in some cases voting is the only way to reach consensus. There are two categories for voting rules: unanimity and qualified majority voting (QMV). In the case of unanimity any country can block the decision-making process by casting a ‘no’ vote. However, QMV is more commonly used and is based on ‘weighted’ votes (every member state has a certain number of votes proportionate to their size and population). But again, it has to be stressed that voting does not take place commonly. Member states will rather come to a mutual agreement than try to hold on to their national points of view until the very end. This shows that even the Council of Ministers, the most intergovernmental of all the European Union institutions, is not all about fighting for national benefits but instead tries to look for what is good for the Union as well. The Council of Ministers is also the executive power of the European Union. As such, its function is â€Å"to provide leadership and steer the pace and direction of European integration, seen especially in areas of diplomacy and foreign affairs.† (Cini, 2003: 149). In this task, it is aided by the European Council that sets the broad political agenda. The European Council The European Council, which is the meeting of the heads of member state governments, was established in 1974. The meetings had taken place prior to that but it was then that the European Council was institutionalized as an integral part of the European Union. â€Å"The main reason for the creation of the European Council was a growing feeling that the Community was failing to respond adequately or quickly enough to new and increasingly difficult challenges.† (Nugent, 2003: 179) The powers of the European Council at the moment (they have evolved over time and without a doubt will keep evolving as well) are the following: It defines the broad political direction and guidelines of the European Union. It guides the European Union’s development and determines the guidelines of economic policies within the Union; and it defines the general principles and guidelines for Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and takes decisions for implementing CFSP. Its task is also to â⠂¬Å"decide on common strategies to be implemented by the Union in areas where the Member States have important interests in common.† (Nugent, 2003: 181) And finally, â€Å"the Council shall ensure the unity, consistency and effectiveness of action by the Union.† (Nugent, 2003: 181) Basically, the European Council is a political get-together that unites the national interests of the member states into a broad political agenda. Even if the European Council is not part of the official decision-making machinery, it still has an important role in that because â€Å"final and legally binding EU decisions may be made by other EU institutions, but major political decisions concerning the institutional and policy development of the EU are now generally taken by, or at least are channeled through and given clearance by, the European Council.† (Nugent. 2003: 182) The meetings of the European Council are prepared by the General Affairs and External Relations Council, again to ease the workload of the busy heads of states. National Interests and the Decision-making Process in the European Union In this section I intend to look at the decision-making process within the second and third pillars more specifically and see if that can offer proof of the claim that the Council of Ministers acts as the protector of state interests within the European Union. The main question here is whether member states will rather reach consensus, even if that might mean having to give up some of their national interests, or use their right to veto (or become part of a blocking minority) to ensure that national gains are reached? As mentioned before, the Council of Ministers exercises its decision-making authority especially in matters under the Second and Third Pillars. Under these pillars, which comprise of Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and justice and home affairs, the European Parliament is not an official part of the decision-making machinery; even if it is allowed state its opinion on the issues. The member states can be regarded as having strong national interests in these two areas, mostly related to national sovereignty and geopolitical and economic interests. In the past, the Council of Ministers had a strong emphasis on national interests, under some informal rules, such as for example the Luxembourg Compromise: â€Å"For a long time the most important of these [the informal rules] was the Luxembourg ‘Compromise’ of 1966, under which it was asserted by the French government of the day that member states should be able to block decisions that would threaten ‘very important national interests’.† (Hayes-Renshaw and Wallace, 2005: 14) However, now Qualified Majority Voting (QMV) has become more important than unanimity voting, therefore vetoing is no longer as useful, or even possible. â€Å"Ever since QMV became an embedded option, votes have been formally taken on only about a quarter of eligible decisions, often with abstentions, rather than negative votes.† (Hayes-Renshaw and Wallace, 2005: 18) But even QMV is not often used because any kind of voting is not a common practice in the Council of Mini sters. States will rather reach consensus through lengthy negotiations. There exists some problems with QMV though which imply that member states still feel that their national interests might be threatened: weighted votes lead to larger states being underrepresented (not having enough votes relative to their population) and vice versa smaller states being overrepresented. â€Å"Even if the weight of an individual small country is limited, it is not only symbolic. It determines the extent to which the country can be an effective and valued partner in qualified majorities or blocking minorities, and thereby receive support for its national interests.† (Moberg, 2002: 267) Therefore, safeguarding national interests is still important and even if vetoing as such is not an option in most cases, blocking power remains important. Rather than clinging on to a specific national point of view, member states take a more flexible approach and team with like-minded states with shared interests. Coalitions of states tend to stay the same because â€Å"usually, states have a stable set of national interests, which in most cases are basically the same even after a change of government† (Moberg, 2002: 261). Weighting of interests is more important than mere concepts of power and blocking a decision can bring about new proposals, better suited to national interests. The importance of national interests can also be seen in the fact that â€Å"in the daily work of the EU, (†¦), the dividing line is almost never between large and small, but rather between countries with opposite interests in other respects† (Moberg, 2002: 270). Despite this, a strong consensus-culture seems to exist. Member states cannot defend their national interests all the time but they have to consider their relations to other countries too, as well as their own image. At the end of the day, work at the Council of Ministers is like any group work: everyone has their opinion but something has to give and everyone has to compromise to find a solution that pleases everyone. And in the case of the European Union, a solution that allows the Union to function and move the integration forward. Conclusion Hayes-Renshaw offers a very useful one-sentence summary of the Council of Ministers: â€Å"The Council is the EU’s chief decision-making body, the place where national interests are articulated, defended, and aggregated by ministerial representatives of all member governments.† (2002: 47). It sums up the main functions of the Council, however it is interesting that she should emphasize the fact that the Council is where national interests are represented. Cini recognizes the Council of Ministers as â€Å"the premier EU institution for representing national interests and power† (2003: 163) but highlights the fact that the Council is also more than merely the forum for national negotiation and bargaining: â€Å"It is also a collective system of governance which locks member states into permanent negotiations with one another.† (2003: 163) The Council is therefore both intergovernmental and supranational. â€Å"†¦ It blurs the traditional distinction be tween the national and European levels, between intergovernmental and supranational.† (Cini, 2003: 163) From these descriptions and the previous summaries on the Council of Ministers and the European Council, can we come to a conclusion that they are protecting state interests within the European Union? The European Union’s strongly supranational character might lead us to believe that any institution that has even a little to do with member state’s own interests is intergovernmental and safeguarding national interests and gains. This is even strengthened by the prominent roles that the Council of Ministers and the European Council have – for many outsiders, they are the Union. But as we can see from their functions and roles and positions that have been examined in this essay, we can conclude that they are indeed protecting national interests and it looks unlikely that the member states would settle for smaller representation. However, we should bear in m ind that protecting national interests is not the only function they have in the European Union and they also serve a purpose to the deepening integration and a bigger picture of Europe. Bibliography Cini, M. (2003): European Union Politics. Oxford: University Press. Hayes-Renshaw, F. (2002): The Council of Ministers, in Peterson, J. and Shackleton, M.: The Institutions of the European Union. Oxford: University Press. Hayes-Renshaw, F. and Wallace, H. (2005): The Council of Ministers of the European Union. London: MacMillan. Moberg, A. (2002): The Nice Treaty and Voting Rules in the Council, in Journal of Common Market Studies. Vol. 40, no. 2 Nugent, N. (2003): The Government and Politics of the European Union. New York: Palgrave MacMillan. Research Papers on Are The Council of Ministers and European Council Protectors of The State - Government Research PaperAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropePETSTEL analysis of IndiaDefinition of Export QuotasTwilight of the UAWHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Relationship between Media Coverage and Social andCapital PunishmentOpen Architechture a white paper