Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
Name	Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
Type	Treaty provision
Adopted	Treaty of Lisbon
Jurisdiction	European Union
Related	Single European Act, Treaty establishing the European Community, Treaty on European Union

Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union is a provision in the Treaty of Lisbon framework that authorizes the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union to adopt measures for establishing and functioning of the internal market across the European Union. It builds on predecessors such as the Single European Act and the Treaty of Rome and interacts with institutions including the European Commission and the Court of Justice of the European Union. The article has been central to debates involving World Trade Organization obligations, European Central Bank policies, and national legislative competences of member states like France and Germany.

Text of the Article

The text sets out a legal basis for approximation of laws that directly affect the establishment and functioning of the internal market, empowering the European Commission to propose directives and regulations to be adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union under the ordinary legislative procedure linked to the Treaty on European Union. It references market measures that may concern standards relevant to European Investment Bank operations or to trade relations with third countries such as the United States and China. The provision contains specific rules about the harmonization of national laws, the protection of competition as understood by the European Commission and the Court of Justice of the European Union, and transitional arrangements reflecting precedents from the Treaty establishing the European Community.

Purpose and Legal Basis

Article 114's purpose is to create a clear legal basis within the Treaty of Lisbon for harmonizing national measures to remove barriers to the internal market, promoting the objectives pursued by the European Council and the European Parliament. It rests on the legal architecture created by the Treaty of Rome and refined by the Single European Act, seeking to reconcile market integration priorities with rights protected under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights. The article has been invoked in policy domains ranging from environmental law initiatives with links to the European Environment Agency to consumer protection rules touching on activities overseen by the European Consumer Organisation.

Legislative Procedure and Voting Rules

Legislation under Article 114 is typically proposed by the European Commission and adopted through the ordinary legislative procedure involving the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, where qualified majority voting rules promulgated by the Treaty on European Union apply. Amendments and directives in this area often engage interinstitutional negotiations with actors such as the European Council and use comitology mechanisms involving committees like those under the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Voting dynamics reflect balances among member states including Poland, Italy, Spain, and Netherlands, and intersect with external commitments under the World Trade Organization and bilateral agreements like those with Norway or Switzerland.

Scope and Application

The scope of the article covers measures aimed at approximation of laws affecting the internal market, including product standards, public procurement rules, and technical harmonization relevant to sectors overseen by institutions such as the European Medicines Agency, the European Banking Authority, and the European Aviation Safety Agency. Application extends to areas where harmonization serves market integration objectives, while respecting exceptions linked to public health policies of United Kingdom predecessors and current national regimes of member states such as Sweden or Finland. The article has been used in legislative dossiers on chemicals regulation connected to the REACH Regulation, digital services touching the Digital Single Market, and energy policy involving the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators.

Case Law and Interpretations

The Court of Justice of the European Union has delivered key judgments interpreting limits and conditions for measures based on Article 114, referencing cases that weigh proportionality principles and subsidiarity concerns raised by national courts like the Bundesverfassungsgericht and by advocates general. Decisions have addressed the relationship between harmonization and fundamental rights under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, as well as compatibility with competition rulings involving the European Commission and judgments touching the European Court of Human Rights. Prominent cases have clarified when Article 114 may be used to justify measures in areas such as public health, environmental protection, and financial services regulated by the European Securities and Markets Authority.

Criticisms and Political Debate

Criticism of Article 114 has been voiced by national parliaments such as the Polish Sejm and by political groups in the European Parliament arguing that its broad language permits overreach into domains traditionally managed by member states like Austria and Hungary. Think tanks and scholars referencing institutions like the Centre for European Policy Studies and the European Policy Centre debate tensions between harmonization and subsidiarity as framed by the Treaty on European Union, while business associations including the European Round Table for Industry and civil society groups such as Friends of the Earth Europe contest its application in dossiers from chemicals to digital regulation. Political discussions often surface during European Parliament elections and in negotiations at the European Council when member states seek to delimit the reach of harmonizing measures.

Category:European Union law