Covid-19 and the Future of EU Citizenship: In need of a common EU crisis-mode response?

Abstract

The blog post questions the extent to which the de-centralised response to Covid-19 in relation to the right to move and reside freely is in fact diminishing the essence of EU citizenship and if so, is now the time to switch to a centralised EU crisis-mode policy? The Covid-19 pandemic crisis has swiftly transformed the lives of citizens and led to deep restructuring in the European legal and political space. National measures have been adopted to limit the spread of the outbreak, including travel restrictions and reinstatement of border controls, which have greatly segmented the free movement rights of citizens. The area of public health including emergencies such as a pandemic, falls under the Member States’ competence, as far as it is exercised in compliance with EU law, while restrictions on public health grounds are permitted under EU law. However, the wide discrepancy observed between the national measures adopted, has allegedly diminished the fundamental status of EU citizenship and the essence of the rights attached to it.