EU development cooperation post-Lisbon: main constitutional challenges

Publishers Abstract
The changes brought about by the 2009-Lisbon Treaty both directly and indirectly affected the EU’s development co-operation policy.

The Treaty’s explication and reorganisation of the Union’s external relations objectives and principles and the streamlining of the development co-operation policy objective (i.e. the identification of poverty reduction/eradication as a primary objective) are likely to have a lasting constitutional impact on policy-making and legal methodology in this policy area.

Moreover, post-Lisbon, the Union’s development co-operation policy is faced with three constitutional challenges: (1) organisation of the financial aid aspect of the Union’s development co-operation policy remains crucial; finding the right constitutional balance for development co-operation policy vis-à-vis other policies constitutes an area of potential conflict; the relationship between the 28 Member States’ development co-operation policies and that of the Union presumably forms the most significant constitutional challenge.

• Primary Source

Sweet and Maxwell: European Law Review http://www.sweetandmaxwell.co.uk/catalogue/productdetails.aspx?recordid=427&productid=6968

ESO: Background information: Demarcating the Union’s Development Cooperation Policy after Lisbon: Commission v. Council (Philippines PCFA) http://www.europeansources.info/record/demarcating-the-unions-development-cooperation-policy-after-lisbon-commission-v-council-philippines-pcfa/

ESO Information Guide: European External Action Service - EEAS http://www.europeansources.info/record/information-guide-european-external-action-service/

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