Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences

The inclusion of the so-called ‘horizontal social clause’, namely Article 9 TFEU, in EU primary law imposes on the EU legislator an obligation to balance the objectives of a specific policy area with the social interests contained therein. For instance, when adopting internal market measures pursuan...

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Main Author: Silvia Giudici
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Law 2024-12-01
Series:Croatian Yearbook of European Law and Policy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.cyelp.com/index.php/cyelp/article/view/579
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author Silvia Giudici
author_facet Silvia Giudici
author_sort Silvia Giudici
collection DOAJ
description The inclusion of the so-called ‘horizontal social clause’, namely Article 9 TFEU, in EU primary law imposes on the EU legislator an obligation to balance the objectives of a specific policy area with the social interests contained therein. For instance, when adopting internal market measures pursuant to Article 114 TFEU, the EU legislator would need to reconcile free trade aims and social interests. At the same time, this process also has consequences on the scope of EU competences. Hence, this article analyses which implications related to the scope of EU competences stem from the obligation to read Article 114 TFEU in light of Article 9 TFEU. In addition, it accounts for the consequences that this process entails for the division of powers between the EU and the Member States. The main argument proposed is that the obligation to read internal market powers in light of Article 9 TFEU not only influences the use of EU competences to pursue certain social objectives, but also leads to an expansion of EU harmonising powers in domains that remain of national competence. Thus, the division between EU and Member State competences becomes increasingly blurred. The Court of Justice of the EU has favoured this tendency by recognising on many occasions the possibility for the EU to rely on Article 114 TFEU, while developing a restrictive interpretation of the limitations of EU competences in social fields enshrined in the Treaties.
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spelling doaj-art-01fe1c446516415e98304a2d5b5c29452025-02-06T15:50:06ZengUniversity of Zagreb, Faculty of LawCroatian Yearbook of European Law and Policy1845-56621848-99582024-12-01201315710.3935/cyelp.20.2024.579Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of CompetencesSilvia Giudici0https://orcid.org/0009-0003-4732-0909Università degli Studi di TorinoThe inclusion of the so-called ‘horizontal social clause’, namely Article 9 TFEU, in EU primary law imposes on the EU legislator an obligation to balance the objectives of a specific policy area with the social interests contained therein. For instance, when adopting internal market measures pursuant to Article 114 TFEU, the EU legislator would need to reconcile free trade aims and social interests. At the same time, this process also has consequences on the scope of EU competences. Hence, this article analyses which implications related to the scope of EU competences stem from the obligation to read Article 114 TFEU in light of Article 9 TFEU. In addition, it accounts for the consequences that this process entails for the division of powers between the EU and the Member States. The main argument proposed is that the obligation to read internal market powers in light of Article 9 TFEU not only influences the use of EU competences to pursue certain social objectives, but also leads to an expansion of EU harmonising powers in domains that remain of national competence. Thus, the division between EU and Member State competences becomes increasingly blurred. The Court of Justice of the EU has favoured this tendency by recognising on many occasions the possibility for the EU to rely on Article 114 TFEU, while developing a restrictive interpretation of the limitations of EU competences in social fields enshrined in the Treaties.https://www.cyelp.com/index.php/cyelp/article/view/579eu competencesinternal marketarticle 9 tfeuhorizontal clausesarticle 114 tfeusocial market economy
spellingShingle Silvia Giudici
Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
Croatian Yearbook of European Law and Policy
eu competences
internal market
article 9 tfeu
horizontal clauses
article 114 tfeu
social market economy
title Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
title_full Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
title_fullStr Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
title_full_unstemmed Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
title_short Interpreting EU Internal Market Powers in Light of Article 9 TFEU Social Objectives: Implications for the Attribution of Competences
title_sort interpreting eu internal market powers in light of article 9 tfeu social objectives implications for the attribution of competences
topic eu competences
internal market
article 9 tfeu
horizontal clauses
article 114 tfeu
social market economy
url https://www.cyelp.com/index.php/cyelp/article/view/579
work_keys_str_mv AT silviagiudici interpretingeuinternalmarketpowersinlightofarticle9tfeusocialobjectivesimplicationsfortheattributionofcompetences