Core–Periphery Relations and European Integration

Core–periphery relations have always played an important role within nation-states, across regions and at the global level. Given the significance of core–periphery dynamics to state building, we would expect patterns of economic convergence and divergence to matter in the process of European integration. This chapter traces how the EU addressed its treaty commitment to ‘harmonious development’ as it deepened and widened following the original aim of the Treaty of Rome. We identify a series of significant phases in the EU’s response to core–periphery relations. A key argument is that every major development in the EU, with the exception of the euro, was accompanied by policy provisions designed to alleviate divergence.

12. Free movement of persons and services and freedom of establishment

This chapter examines the free movement of workers, family members and non-active persons and freedom of establishment, and places this within the framework of citizenship of the European Union. The free movement of workers is one of the original four freedoms in the Treaty of Rome establishing the European Economic Community. Free movement of workers was essential for the construction of an internal market, and for several decades the freedom to move within the Community maintained its strict link with economic activity. Free movement has now evolved beyond the economically active with access, for example, to social advantages and rights for family members. This chapter also considers the exceptions to free movement (e.g. the public health and public security exceptions) and special cases of free movement (e.g. sport and lawyers).

The Development of Consumer Protection Policy from Roman Law to Modern European Union Law

The article examines the development of consumer protection policy from the most ancient historical acts to modern legal acts of the European Union. The key laws of the Roman Empire in the field of consumer protection have been studied, among which the main ones are: «Lex Iulia de Annona», «Edictum de pretiis rerum venalium — Edict of maximum prices», «Civil Code» of Emperor Justinian. It is determined that the studied legislative acts were the first attempts to consolidate the protection of the rights of buyers (consumers). Roman law, which became the basis of modern legal systems in Europe and many non-European countries, has not lost its relevance. Ancient Roman laws are compared with the modern practice of the European Union. The history of the emergence of consumer law in the European Community is considered, which is divided into three key stages from the establishment of the European Community to modern EU policy. It is determined that at the beginning of its creation the EU policy of consumer protection was considered as an element of ensuring the sustainable operation of the internal market. The key constituent acts of the Union are considered, among which the Treaty of Rome of 1957, the Single European Act of 1987, the Treaty of Amsterdam of 1997 and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union of 2000 are highlighted. The analysis of Art. 2 of the Treaty of Rome stipulates that one of the key goals — protection and improvement of living standards was interpreted also as consumer protection. This strategy was later strengthened by the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997, which identified the promotion of a high level of consumer protection as one of the Community’s tasks. The current EU policy in the field of consumer protection, which is aimed at updating legislation in accordance with modern realities, is studied. Among the key acts of secondary law is the EU Directive № 2019/2161, which focuses on better application and modernization of legislation on consumer protection and amends existing EU directives. It is determined that the current consumer protection policy in the EU ensures the proper and effective functioning of the single market through constant updating of legislation taking into account social, technological, economic and environmental changes.

11. Parliamentary Sovereignty within the European Union

This chapter examines the way in which the UK’s membership in the European Economic Community (EEC) prompted changes in the domestic constitutional order. The discussions include the founding principles of the Treaty of Rome; the accession of the UK into the EEC; EEC law, parliamentary sovereignty, and the UK courts; and the horizontal and vertical effects of directives. The chapter explores the controversies engendered by the Maastricht, Amsterdam, and Lisbon Treaties; and concludes by assessing in what senses continued EC membership in the early part of the twenty-first century might have entailed a loss of the UK’s ‘sovereignty’ to a federal European constitution and a rebalancing of power within the domestic constitution between Parliament and the courts.

The United States of Europe: A Gravity Model Evaluation of the Four Freedoms

One of the pillars of the 1957 Treaty of Rome that ultimately led to the European Union is the commitment to the four freedoms of movement (goods, services, persons, and capital). Over the following decades, as the members expanded in numbers, they also sought to deepen the integration amongst themselves in all four dimensions. This paper estimates the success of these policies based primarily on a gravity framework. Distinct from past evaluations, we augment the traditional equation for international flows with the corresponding intra-national flows, permitting us to distinguish welfare-improving reductions in frictions from Fortress-Europe effects. We complement the gravity approach by measuring the extent of price convergence. We compare both quantity and price assessments of free movement with corresponding estimates for the 50 American states.

Human Rights in EU Migration Laws and Policies

This chapter analyses the tools used as part of EU migration policy and argues that these are very much focused on control which has negative implications for the human rights of migrants. The EU's current status as a major international player in migration governance has become only possible after the development of the relevant competences on migration and asylum. The original Treaty of Rome included no provisions on migration other than those ushering in the free movement of workers among EU Member States. Today, the free movement of EU Member State nationals has been incorporated into the notion of EU citizenship which does not create a new and separate bond of nationality between the EU and the citizen, but refers to a collection of rights, duties, and political participation stemming from EU law. While the notion of migration covers both immigration and emigration, the chapter focuses on the laws and policies regulating immigration into the EU and briefly touches upon third country nationals' (TCNs) rights of residence and movement within the EU.

Equality and Non-discrimination Law in the EU

This chapter addresses equality and non-discrimination, which are explicitly acknowledged as foundational values in the EU context in Article 2 TEU. Similarly, the right to non-discrimination enjoys wide recognition in international human rights law. In the EU, non-discrimination had a specific role to play from the outset of European integration. Despite being founded without explicit reference to human rights, the original Treaty of Rome nonetheless prohibited discrimination on the basis of nationality (now Article 18 TFEU), as well as discrimination regarding pay between men and women (now Article 157 TFEU). Today, the scope of non-discrimination was enlarged, paving the way for Directives on racial equality and non-discrimination in the field of employment on the grounds of religion, disability, age, and sexual orientation. Moreover, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) identified the principle of equality as a general principle of EU law.

Value Added Taxation during the Third European Integration (the Treaty of Rome of 1957)

Based on an analysis of the regulatory framework of the modified value added tax (VAT), the author has studied the characteristics and singled out periods of the Europe-wide value added taxation. It is noted that the legal mechanism of value added taxation acquires the quality of a rather dynamic regulator of economics in the conditions of the European Union, while the arising effects of social correction, slowdown of capital widening and economic integration processes positively affect social development in each socially oriented European states.

Origins and Telos

Why do states federate? This chapter argues that states constitute federal unions because they are incapable of maintaining their own political autonomy and existence. The main reasons for this are a military threat or because the states need to govern and have access to larger internal markets. In order to perpetuate the political autonomy of its Member States, a federation is therefore concerned with defence and/or economic government. After WWII, with the collapse of the fascist experiments and the decline of the European maritime empires, most European states were faced with a long overdue crisis and were incapable of securing their most basic aims. European integration is an integral part of the post-WWII reconstitution of Europe and a response to this crisis. Proposals for both ‘defence federation’ and ‘economic federation’ were launched after WWII; only the latter was successfully established with the Treaty of Rome.