The Changing Legal Framework for Services of General Interest in Europe: Between Competition and Solidarity - Hardcover

9789067043083: The Changing Legal Framework for Services of General Interest in Europe: Between Competition and Solidarity

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 9067043087 ISBN 13: 9789067043083

Publisher: T.M.C. Asser Press, 2009

INTRODUCTION Markus Krajewski, Ulla Neergaard, Johan van de Gronden I. The changing framework of public services in Europe In recent years, the body of European law affecting public services – services of general economic interest as they are called in the EC Treaty – has been subject to a significant transformation. Until the mid-1990s, services provided by public - thorities on the basis of monopolies or other forms of restrictions of market access were regarded as derogations from the disciplines of the internal market and c- petition law. The underlying assumption was that the open and competitive market order established by the EC Treaty was also an appropriate framework for the p- vision of services of general economic interest. The early liberalisation of telec- munication and postal services were also driven by the assumption that more competition will lead to better and cheaper services for the consumers. However, soon the European institutions, in particular the European Commission noticed that high quality public services were not only important to consumers, but that these services also formed a significant element of the European social model which could at times be in conflict with the strict application of the logics of free markets and unrestricted competition. Hence, greater emphasis was placed on the specific requirements of services of general economic interest as core values of the Member States and the Community.

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Book Description:

How have recent developments in EC law affected the provision of public services such as transportation, social and health services and utilities? Alongside essays exploring specific topics, this book includes reports from ten EC Member States, describing the impact of EC law on public service provision in these countries.

About the Author:

Markus Krajewski is Assistant Professor at the University of Potsdam, Germany, where he teaches European, international and German public law.

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