The concept of supranational European citizenship has become one of the core concepts of the EU?s unique polity. It has, however, been one of the most difficult to actualise. This book examines the challenges of, and barriers to, exercising full citizenship rights for European citizens and considers how they might best be overcome. Drawing on cutting-edge research from interdisciplinary areas of study, this book examines the key issues surrounding EU citizenship. Reflecting on the diversity of European societies, it identifies, analyses and compares the many barriers that citizens face to fully exercising their rights. With chapters examining key issues from migration to democratic governance and social rights, Moving Beyond Barriers critically analyzes concepts of citizenship and the way that EU citizenship is politically, legally, economically and socially institutionalised, and elaborates alternatives to the current paths of realising EU citizenship. Citizenship issues feature prominently in the European policy-making agenda and the insights offered by this book will be of benefit to those with an interest in EU law, social and public policy and administration. Policy-makers and practitioners will also benefit from the reflections on citizenship and the practical guidance on how to move beyond current issues regarding EU citizenship. Contributors include: B. Anderson, W. Bakker, V. Baricevic, F. Cheneval, S. de Vries, D. di Micco, O. Eberl, M. Ferrin, M.-P. Granger, M. Hoogenboom, E. Ioriatti, T. Knijn, N. Kosti, D. Levi-Faur, M. Naldini, M. Prak, E. Pulice, M. Seeleib-Kaiser, S. Seubert, I. Shutes, M. van der Kolk, F. van Waarden, S. Walker, P. Wallis

Ever since its inception, one of the essential tasks of the EU has been to establish the internal market. Despite the impressive body of case law and legislation regarding the internal market, legal and factual barriers still exist for citizens seeking to exercise their full rights under EU law. This book analyses these barriers and proposes ways in which they may be overcome. Next to analysing the key barriers to exercising economic rights more generally, this book focuses on three areas which represent the applications of the four basic freedoms: consumer rights, the rights of professionals in gaining access to the market, and intellectual property rights in the Digital Single Market. With chapters from leading researchers, the main pathways towards the reduction and removal of these barriers are considered. Taking into account important factors including the global financial crisis, as well as practical barriers, such as multilingualism, the solutions provided in this book present a pathway to enhance cross-border realization of European citizens? access to their economic rights, as well as increasing in the cultural richness of the EU. EU Citizens? Economic Rights in Action is an important book, which will be an essential resource for students of EU citizenship and economics, as well as for EU policymakers and practitioners interested in the field.

The changes made by the Lisbon Treaty suggest that its entry into force in December 2009 marks a new stage in the shaping of the EU's commitment to the protection of fundamental rights. This book's concern is to provide an examination of the several (and interlocking) challenges which the Lisbon reforms present. The book will not only address the fresh and intriguing challenges for the EU as an entity committed to the protection and promotion of fundamental rights presented by developments 'post-Lisbon', but also a number of conundrums about the scope and method of protection of fundamental rights in the EU which existed 'pre-Lisbon' and which endure. The book consists of three parts. The first part is concerned with the safeguarding of fundamental rights in Europe's internal market. The second part of the book is entitled 'The Scope of Fundamental Rights in EU Law' and the chapters discuss the reach of fundamental rights and their horizontal dimension. The last part of this book deals with 'The Constitutional Dimension of Fundamental Rights' analysing the special relationship between the ECJ and the ECtHR and the issue of rights competition between the EU Charter on Fundamental Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and national rights catalogues.

The entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009 caused the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights to be granted binding effect. This raised a host of intriguing questions. Would this transform the EU's commitment to fundamental rights? Should it transform that commitment? How, if at all, can we balance competing rights and principles? (The interaction of the social and the economic spheres offers a particular challenge). How deeply does the EU conception of fundamental rights reach into and bind national law and practice? How deeply does it affect private parties? How much flexibility has been left to the Court in making these interpretative choices? What is the likely effect of another of the reforms achieved by the Lisbon Treaty, the commitment of the EU to accede to the ECHR? This book addresses all of these questions in the light of five years of practice under the Charter as a binding instrument.

The process of European integration has had a marked influence on the nature and meaning of citizenship in national and post-national contexts as well as on the definition and exercise of civil rights across Member States. This original edited collection brings together insights from EU law, human rights and comparative constitutional law to address this underexplored nexus. Split into two distinct thematic parts, it first evaluates relevant frameworks of civil rights protection, with special attention on enforcement mechanisms and the role of civil society organisations. Next, it engages extensively with a series of individual rights connected to EU citizenship. Comprising detailed studies on access to nationality, the right to free movement, non-discrimination, family life, data protection and the freedom of expression, this book maps the expanding role of European law in the national sphere. It identifies a number of challenges to core civil rights that the current supranational framework is at pains to address. The contributors suggest and develop several new ideas on how to take the EU integration project forward. Civil Rights and EU Citizenship provides an innovative perspective on both the conceptual dimensions and the actual realities of rights-based citizenship which will be of interest to legal scholars, practitioners and policy-makers alike. Contributors include: S. Adamo, P.J. Blanco, S. de Vries, H. de Waele, T. Dudek, M.-P. Granger, K. Irion, A.E. Menendez, J. Morijn, P. Phoa, O. Salat, H. van Eijken, J.G. Vega

The entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009 caused the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights to be granted binding effect. This raised a host of intriguing questions. Would this transform the EU's commitment to fundamental rights? Should it transform that commitment? How, if at all, can we balance competing rights and principles? (The interaction of the social and the economic spheres offers a particular challenge). How deeply does the EU conception of fundamental rights reach into and bind national law and practice? How deeply does it affect private parties? How much flexibility has been left to the Court in making these interpretative choices? What is the likely effect of another of the reforms achieved by the Lisbon Treaty, the commitment of the EU to accede to the ECHR? This book addresses all of these questions in the light of five years of practice under the Charter as a binding instrument.