Associated Union citizenship: Premature end of an idea with great potential? (TruLies Blog by Oliver Schwarz)
Not all good ideas are necessarily leading to good projects. The latest witness therefore is the project of free Interrail tickets for young Europeans. Another example for a failed European proposal is the associated Union citizenship. For British citizens, the upcoming Brexit means losing their rights as citizens of the European Union. The rethinking of Union citizenship and the creation of transnational electoral rolls offer an alternative concept to the complete exclusion of British citizens from the European institutions and the political decision-making process. In light of hard lines in the Brexit-negotiations, this contribution shows the possible options and the added value of an associated Union citizenship.
Dr. Oliver Schwarz is a research fellow at the “Institut für Politikwissenschaft“ at the University Duisburg-Essen.
The project “TruLies – The Truth about Lies on Europe”, aided by the Stiftung Mercator and run by the Institute for European Politics (IEP) in cooperation with Das Progressive Zentrum, has two principal objectives. On the one hand, it strives to deconstruct Eurosceptic and populist prejudices, animosities, and false assertions, by means of social scientifically-grounded analysis. Thus, it aims to contribute to a rationalisation of the public discourse and debate in Germany (and beyond). On the other hand, “TruLies Europe” endeavours to publicly communicate its findings beyond the select circle of scholars to political actors, civil society, and the wider public. You may find further information on our website: http://trulies-europe.de/.
Oliver Schwarz´s contribution can be found here.
