European Council of Maastricht, 09-10/12/1991

The Intergovernmental Conferences on Political Union and Economic and Monetary Union, convened at the level of Heads of State and Government, reached an agreement on the Draft Treaty on European Union based on the texts concerning Political Union and the text on the Draft Treaty on Economic and Monetary Union. The necessary final legal processing and harmonization of the texts will be completed with the aim of signing the Treaty in early February 1992.
With particular reference to social policy, the European Council confirms that the present provisions of the Treaty can be considered as “community acquis”.
The European Council notes that eleven member states wish to continue on the path set by the Social Charter in 1989. To this end, it was agreed to append to the Treaty a Protocol on social policy, which will bind the Community institutions to take and implement the necessary decisions, while adapting the decision-making procedures for their implementation by eleven member states.
The European Council recalls that the Treaty on European Union, which the Heads of State and Government have now agreed upon, provides that all European states whose systems of governance are based on the principle of democracy may apply to become members of the Union.