A European Bill Of Rights: Taking Stock Of The Charter Of Fundamental Rights Of The European Union

Abstract

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (EU) was proclaimed at the EU summit in Nice on 7 December 2000. Since 2009, it has been binding for the EU and the Member States. With seven titles and 54 articles, the Charter of Fundamental Rights sets out what the EU and the Member States have to observe. What is the significance of the Charter? – Is it an inventory of what is already in force and therefore of no tangible benefit to the individual, or does it have “added value”? – Is it a new Bill of Rights? Euphoric advocates of the Charter of Fundamental Rights see it as an instrument for more European democracy and transparancy, even as a precursor to a European constitution. Sceptics doubt the necessity of the Charter. Fomer German Foreign Minister Josef Fischer has called it a “milestone in the history of European unification”.