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[Luxembourg 2005 Presidency of the Council of the European Union]
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Member States

Austria
Belgium
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
United Kingdom

Austria

Area: 83 870 km2
Population: 8 174 762
Capital: Vienna
Official language: German
Currency: euro
National holiday: 26 October (end of occupation and 1955 vote on permanent neutrality)
Republic of Austria
Federal Republic. Composed of 9 Länder. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1920, amended in 1929
President: Heinz Fischer
Chancellor: Wolfgang Schüssel
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Dr Ursula Plassnik
Nationalrat: National Council, 183 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Bundesrat: Federal Council, 63 members elected for five or six years by the diets of the 9 Länder.
Women in Parliament: 33.9%
Per capita GDP: EUR 26 141 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Belgium

Area: 30 528 km2
Population: 10 348 276
Capital: Brussels
Official languages: Flemish, French, German
Currency: euro
National holiday: 21 July (accession to the throne of Leopold I in 1831)
Kingdom of Belgium
Constitutional Monarchy. Federal State. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1831, amended nine times.
King: Albert II
Prime Minister: Guy Verhofstadt
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Karel de Gucht
House of Representatives: 150 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Senate: 71 members, 40 of whom elected for four years, 21 appointed by the local authority councils and 10 senators co-opted.
Women in Parliament: 35.3%
Per capita GDP: EUR 24 967 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Cyprus

Area: 9 251 km2
Population: 775 927
Capital: Nicosia
Official languages: Greek and Turkish
Currency: Cypriot pound
National holiday: 1 October (independence in 1960)
Republic of Cyprus
Member of the Commonwealth
Constitution of 1960
President: Tassos Papadopoulos
Minister for Foreign Affairs: George Lacovou
Chamber of Deputies: 83 members elected for five years by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 10.7%
Per capita GDP: EUR 18 177 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Czech Republic

Area: 78 866 km2
Population: 10 278 200
Capital: Prague
Official language: Czech
Currency: Czech koruna
National holiday: 28 October (1918 Republic)
Czech Republic
Parliamentary Republic.
Constitution of 1992
President: Václav Klaus
Prime Minister: Jiri Paroubek
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Cyril Svoboda
Chamber of Deputies: 200 members elected for four years by universal suffrage
Senate: 81 members elected for six years by universal suffrage, one-third renewable every two years.
Women in Parliament: 17%
Per capita GDP: EUR 14 156 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Denmark

Area: 43 094 km2
Population: 5 413 392
Capital: Copenhagen
Official language: Danish
Currency: Danish krone
National holiday: 5 June (most recent amendment of the Constitution, allowing women to accede to the throne in 1953).
Kingdom of Denmark
Constitutional Monarchy. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1849, amended three times.
Queen: Margrethe II.
Prime Minister: Anders Fogh Rasmussen
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Per Stig Moller
Parliament: 179 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 38%
Per capita GDP: EUR 26 926 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Estonia

Area: 45 226 km2
Population: 1 341 664
Capital: Tallinn
Official language: Estonian
Currency: Estonian kroon
National holiday: 24 February (independence in 1918)
Republic of Estonia
Parliamentary Republic. Presidential system.
Constitution of 1992
President: Arnold Rüütel
Prime Minister: Andrus Ansip
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Urmas Paet
Parliament: 101 members elected for five years by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 18.8%
Per capita GDP: EUR 8 996 (iin 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Finland

Area: 338 145 km2
Population: 5 214 512
Capital: Helsinki
Official languages: Finnish and Swedish
Currency: euro
National holiday: 6 December (independence in 1917)
Republic of Finland
Parliamentary Republic. Presidential system.
Constitution of 1919
President: Tarja Halonen
Prime Minister: Matti Vanhanen
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Erkki Tuomioja
Diet (Eduskunta) (Parliament): 200 members elected for four years by proportional universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 37.5%
Per capita GDP: EUR 24 273 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

France

Area: 547 030 km2
Population: 60 424 213
Capital: Paris
Official language: French
Currency: euro
National holiday: 14 July (Storming of the Bastille in 1789)
French Republic
Semi-presidential system.
Constitution of 1958
President: Jacques Chirac
Prime Minister: Dominique de Villepin
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Philippe Douste-Blazy
National Assembly: 577 members elected for five years by universal suffrage.
Senate: 321 members elected for six years by indirect universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 12.2%
Per capita GDP: EUR 24 465 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Germany

Area: 357 021 km2
Population: 82 100 000
Capital: Berlin
Official language: German
Currency: euro
National holiday: 3 October (reunification in 1990)
Federal Republic of Germany
Federal Republic. Composed of 16 Länder. Parliamentary system.
Basic Law of 1949, amended in 1990.
President: Horst Köhler
Chancellor: Gerhard Schröder
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Joschka Fischer
Bundestag: 672 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Bundesrat: Federal Council, 68 members appointed by the governments of the 16 Länder.
Women in Parliament: 32.2%
Per capita GDP: EUR 23 455 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Greece

Area: 131 957 km2
Population: 10 647 529
Capital: Athens
Official language: Greek
Currency: euro
National holiday: 25 March (independence in 1821)
Greek Republic
Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1975
President: Konstantin Stephanopoulos
Prime Minister: Costas Karamanlis
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Petros Molyviatis
Chamber of Deputies (Vouli): 300 members with a four-year term of office, 288 elected by universal suffrage and 12 appointed by the parties (state deputies).
Women in Parliament: 14%
Per capita GDP: EUR 15 682 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Hungary

Area: 93 036 km2
Population: 10 068 000
Capital: Budapest
Official language: Hungarian
Currency: forint
National holiday: 20 August (St Stephen’s Day)
Hungarian Republic
Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1990
President: Laszlo Solyom
Prime Minister: Ferenc Gyurcsany
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Ferenc Somogy
National Assembly: 386 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 9.8%
Per capita GDP: EUR 12 017 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Ireland

Area: 70 282 km2
Population: 3 969 558
Capital: Dublin
Official languages: English and Gaelic
Currency: euro
National holiday: 17 March (St Patrick’s Day)
Republic of Ireland
Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1937, amended in 1972.
President: Mary McAleese
Prime Minister: Bertie Ahern
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Dermot Ahern T.D
National Assembly: 166 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Senate: 60 members, 11 appointed by the Prime Minister, 43 by socio-professional organisations and six representatives of the universities.
Women in Parliament: 13.3%
Per capita GDP: EUR 27 475 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Italy

Area: 301 270 km2
Population: 58 057 447
Capital: Rome
Official language: Italian
Currency: euro
National holiday: 2 June (Day of the Republic, 1946)
Italian Republic
Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1947
President: Carlo Azeglio Ciampi
Prime Minister: Silvio Berlusconi
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Gianfranco Fini
Chamber of Deputies: 630 members elected for five years by direct universal suffrage.
Senate: 315 senators and senators by right (former presidents and 10 life senators appointed by the president).
Women in Parliament: 11.5%
Per capita GDP: EUR 23 382 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Latvia

Area: 64 589 km2
Population: 2 306 306
Capital: Riga
Official language: Latvian
Currency: lats
National holiday: 18 November (independence in 1918)
Republic of Latvia
Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1922
President: Vaira Vike-Freiberga
Prime Minister: Aigars Kalvītis
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Artis Pabriks
Parliament (Saeima): 100 members elected for four years by universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 21%
Per capita GDP: EUR 7 790 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Lithuania

Area: 65 200 km2
Population: 3 607 899
Capital: Vilnius
Official language: Lithuanian
Currency: litas
National holiday: 16 February (independence in 1918)
Republic of Lithuania
Parliamentary system
Constitution of 1992
President: Valdas Adamkus
Prime Minister: Algirdas Brazauskas
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Antanas Valionis
Parliament (Seimas): 141 members elected by universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 10.6%
Per capita GDP: EUR 8 690 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Luxembourg

Area: 2 586 km2
Population: 448 300
Capital: Luxembourg
National language: Luxembourgish
Legislative language: French
Administrative languages: French, German, Luxembourgish
Currency: euro
National holiday: 23 June (Grand Duke's birthday)
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution of 1868
Grand Duke: Henri
Prime Minister: Jean-Claude Juncker
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Jean Asselborn
Chamber of Deputies: 60 deputies elected by proportional universal suffrage for five years.
Women in Parliament: 18.3%
Per capita GDP: EUR 45 310 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Malta

Area: 316 km2
Population: 396 851
Capital: Valletta
Official languages: Maltese and English
Currency: Maltese lira
National holiday: 21 September (independence in 1964)
Republic of Malta
Parliamentary Republic. Member of the Commonwealth.
Constitution of 1964, amended three times.
President: Edward Fenech-Adami
Prime Minister: Lawrence Gonzi
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Michael Frendo
Chamber of Representatives: 65 members elected for five years by universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 9.2%
Per capita GDP: EUR 16 221 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Netherlands

Area: 41 528 km2
Population: 16 318 199
Capital: Amsterdam
Official language: Dutch
Currency: euro
National holiday: 30 April (Queen’s Day)
Kingdom of the Netherlands
Constitutional Monarchy. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1814, amended in 1983.
Queen: Beatrix
Prime Minister: Jan Peter Balkenende
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Bernard Bot
States-General (Staten-Generaal): Parliament, 75 members elected for four years by the provincial States and 150 members elected by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 36.7%
Per capita GDP: EUR 26 455 (iin 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Poland

Area: 312 685 km2
Population: 38 626 349
Capital: Warsaw
Official language: Polish
Currency: zloty
National holiday: 3 May (Constitution of 1791)
Republic of Poland
Parliamentary Republic.
Constitution of 1997
President: Aleksander Kwasniewski
Prime Minister: Marek Belka
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Adam Rotfeld
Diet: 460 members elected for four years by universal suffrage.
Senate: 100 members elected for four years by universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 20.2%
Per capita GDP: EUR 9 546 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Portugal

Area: 92 391 km2
Population: 10 524 145
Capital: Lisbon
Official language: Portuguese
Currency: euro
National holiday: 10 June (Camoes Day, anniversary of the poet’s death in 1580)
Portuguese Republic
Semi-presidential system.
Constitution of 1989
President: Jorge Sampaio
Prime Minister: José Socrates
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Diogo Freitas do Amaral
Parliament: 230 members elected for four years by direct universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 19.1%
Per capita GDP: EUR 16 514 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Slovakia

Area: 49 036 km2
Population: 5 423 567
Capital: Bratislava
Official language: Slovak
Currency: Slovak koruna
National holiday: 1 September (1992 Constitution)
Slovak Republic
Parliamentary Republic.
Constitution of 1992
President: Ivan Gasparovich
Prime Minister: Mikulás Dzurinda
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Eduard Kukan
Assembly of the National Council: 150 members elected for four years by universal suffrage.
Women in Parliament: 19.3%
Per capita GDP: EUR 10 433 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Slovenia

Area: 20 273 km2
Population: 2 011 473
Capital: Ljubljana
Official language: Slovene
Currency: tolar
National holiday: 25 June (independence in 1991)
Republic of Slovenia
Parliamentary Republic.
Constitution of 1991
President: Janez Drnovsek
Prime Minister: Janez Jansa
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Dimitrij Rupel
National Assembly: 90 members, 88 elected by direct universal suffrage for four years, with two seats reserved for the Italian and Hungarian minorities.
Council of State: 40 members elected for five years, divided into five groups of interests.
Women in Parliament: 12.2%
Per capita GDP: €15 84 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Spain

Area: 504 782 km2
Population: 40 280 780
Capital: Madrid
Official languages: Spanish (Castilian), Catalan, Basque and Galician
Currency: euro
National holiday: 12 October (Hispanic Day)
Kingdom of Spain
Constitutional Monarchy. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1978
King: Juan Carlos
Prime Minister: José Luis Zapatero
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Miguel Angel Moratinos
Cortes (Parliament): lower chamber, 350 members elected for four years by universal suffrage.
Senate: 257 members elected for four years, 208 elected by universal suffrage and 49 appointed by the autonomous communities.
Women in Parliament: 36%
Per capita GDP: EUR 19 669 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

Sweden

Area: 449 964 km2
Population: 8 986 400
Capital: Stockholm
Official language: Swedish
Currency: Swedish krone
National holiday: 6 June (day of the flag)
Kingdom of Sweden
Constitutional monarchy. Denominational State. Parliamentary system.
Constitution of 1975
King: Carl Gustaf XVI
Prime Minister: Göran Persson
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Laila Freivalds
Riksdag: 349 members, 310 elected by majority vote and 39 by proportional vote for three years.
Women in Parliament: 45.3%
Per capita GDP: EUR 24 78 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)

United Kingdom

Area: 244 820 km2
Population: 60 270 708
Capital: London
Official language: English
Currency: pound sterling
National holiday: no national holiday, but the Queen's birthday is celebrated (21 April)
United Kingdom

Constitutional Monarchy. Parliamentary system.
No written Constitution.
Queen: Elizabeth II
Prime Minister: Tony Blair
Minister for Foreign Affairs: Jack Straw.
House of Commons: 659 members elected for five years by universal suffrage.
House of Lords: currently 685 members, including two archbishops, 23 bishops and certain life peers appointed by the Prime Minister.
Women in Parliament: 17.9%
Per capita GDP: EUR 24 615 (in 2001 in purchasing power parities; source: Eurostat)


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This page was last modified on : 10-06-2005

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