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European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 28 European Member States, which is accessible by all European countries that meet the set democratic and economic criteria. The term European Union was adopted in 1993 following the Maastricht Treaty. The remit of the Union includes internal markets, the Euro zone, and common agricultural and trade policies.

European Union Collection

The Library of Parliament maintains an extensive EU collection, including, among others, publications, drafting documents, statutes, treaties and databases. The Library has served as the EU depository library since 1974, thus enabling it to systematically accumulate all the main documents and publications concerning the EU. The collection also includes earlier materials, such as past issues of the Official Journal of the European Communities dating back to 1958. The Information Service of the Library of Parliament answers your queries concerning the EU and provides training on the management of EU-related information sources.

EU information package

The main information sources in matters pertaining to the EU. The package is available on our Finnish and Swedish pages only.    


European Economic Crisis information package

The information package on the economic crisis in Europe is a compilation of key decisions and documents relating to the European economic crisis. The package is available on our Finnish pages only.    

Information package on Brexit

Great Britain’s referendum on EU membership on 23 June 2016. This information package is available in Finnish only.

Finland’s accession to the European Union

1 January 2015 marked the 20th anniversary of Finland’s membership in the EU. The information package is available on our Finnish website.