The Maastricht Centre for European Law (MCEL) celebrates its 15th anniversary with a conference entitled ‘EU Law for a Changing Europe’.
In the last years, a series of developments has profoundly changed the European landscape. The EU has had to face important challenges coming from multiple fronts, including in the context of the EMU, migration, environmental protection, EU values, and an increasingly threatening geopolitical scenario. In this evolving context, important questions arise about the role of EU law in responding to emerging issues internally and shaping the future of the EU as a global actor, thereby preserving the EU’s capacity to act in the face of new challenges.
The conference is organised around four thematic panels and two moderated debates. The panels bring together current MCEL members, who will present their ongoing research in relation to the four themes.
Wednesday 10 June:
Panel 1: Rethinking EU Powers: Governance and Enforcement
This panel explores how governance and enforcement mechanisms in the EU legal order are evolving in response to contemporary political and institutional pressures. Contributions examine new enforcement tools of EU law, the role of soft law in different policy fields, and the transformation of institutional power in the Union.
Panel 2: The Founding Principles of EU Law: From Functional to Value‑Based Integration?
This panel reflects on the evolving constitutional foundations of EU law. Once closely tied to economic integration, core principles such as primacy, autonomy, and citizenship increasingly operate within a constitutional landscape shaped by values, rights, and conflicts over identity.
Thursday 11 June
Debate 1: Rethinking the European Union: Values, Rights and Security
The debate brings together different perspectives on the place of EU values and fundamental rights in the context of growing international security concerns. Speakers will consider the role of EU law in navigating these dynamics, ensuring that the EU remains committed to its founding values while responding to emerging geopolitical challenges.
Debate 2: Rethinking the European Union: Simplification and Competitiveness
The speakers featuring in this debate will examine growing calls to simplify EU regulation as a means to strengthen the EU’s competitiveness in the global economy. They will reflect on the origins of these calls, their feasibility, and consider both the potential benefits and risks of simplifying EU regulatory frameworks.
Panel 3: Balancing Different Policy Priorities in EU Law
This panel examines how EU law increasingly addresses multiple
policy priorities simultaneously, including digital regulation, environmental policies, social rights, and economic governance.
Panel 4: The EU’s Changing Role as a Global Actor
This panel explores how geopolitical tensions, economic competition, and global regulatory ambitions are reshaping the EU’s role as a global actor.