The right to launch a European citizens' initiative was introduced on 1 April 2012. It gives EU citizens the possibility to propose legislation on matters where the EU has competence to legislate, and a number of initiatives are today registered on the EU Commission´s special website.

Respect for human rights is a value upon which the European Union is founded, and a precondition for an aspirant state to be considered as a candidate for membership. Contrasting the fundamental rights discourse developing in the EU enlargement context and the situation within the EU, this European Policy Analysis shows the recurrent distortion between internal and external EU fundamental rights regimes, and sheds light on the on-going discussion to find ways of addressing it.

Facilitated access to justice constitutes one of the crucial elements of empowering consumers in the integrated European market. Out-of-court dispute resolution (mediation, arbitration, etc.

The Council of the European Union is certainly the most powerful institution of the European Union, as a major Community legislator – alone or with the European Parliament – and as an executive body. Still, there is only limited knowledge of the Council’s decision-making and how the Council reaches an agreement.

While the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) is generally viewed as an internal policy of the European Union, it also has a significant external dimension. Following several initiatives from the European Council, the EU has thus become a global player in areas such as migration policy, the fight against terrorism and organised crime.

Economic growth has been high on the European agenda for quite a while, with initiatives such as the Europe 2020 strategy and, more recently, the Compact for Growth and Jobs. The initiatives are numerous, but they do not necessarily lead to enhanced growth.

Energy has always had a prominent place in the European integration process. And yet, the establishment of an EU energy policy is relatively recent, particularly in its external dimension.

Sweden´s capacity to implement EU law in a swift and efficient way has varied through the years. A sizeable amount of the complaints and lawsuits against Sweden are indeed caused by delays and other shortcomings in implementing EU directives and regulations.

Even though the Lisbon Treaty has made the rotating Council Presidencies less politically relevant, the country holding the presidency during six months still has an important role to fill. For Denmark, holding the presidency during the first half of 2012, the ongoing crisis in the Eurozone has posed particular challenges.

Cyprus assumed the EU presidency in the midst of the economic crisis. The presidency has been a challenging task, not the least since Cyprus itself has been severely hit by the crisis and is subject to austerity measures.