Is it permissible, according to EU law, to take social considerations into account in the field of public procurement? Could one, for instance, promote gender equality, integration of disabled persons and good working conditions? The authors of the report Public Procurement and Labour in the EU believes that this is the case, but argues that Sweden could use this scope better than today. The report is in Swedish, but contains a summary in English.

Often presented as the "most successful EU policy", enlargement has undoubtedly been one of the most significant undertakings of the European Union over the last two decades. The recent admission of numerous states to the Union has however exposed various shortcomings in the way that policy is carried out.

Improved quality of regulation and legislation is now a pronounced objective at European as well as national level. The European Commission have for some years now tried to convince EU member states to reduce the administrative burdens – especially for companies – and make regulatory impact assessment an integrated part of their regulatory process.

The Open Method of Coordination is a relatively new form of cooperation within the European Union. It is used to adjust the policies of the member states in order to reach common goals.

Circular migration has become a central concept for the future EU migration policy, implying that migrants should be encouraged to move repeatedly between the country of origin and the host country. In this SIEPS report, the author investigates the relevant literature and discusses problems that might arise when forming a migration policy that promotes movement.

The Swedish courts are now in a legal system covering the whole of Europe and their practices. In the case of a preliminary ruling from the European Court of Justice, this is central to the EU's impact in Sweden.

Regardless of whether the global imbalances are seen as a cause, codeterminant or a side-show, the financial crisis has brought back global imbalances on the policy agenda. In this SIEPS research report, Professor Philip R.

The current Spanish EU Presidency has faced a number of tough challenges. These include reaching an agreement on an EU strategy for employment and growth (EU 2020), managing the acute financial crisis in Greece and the EU response to the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, argues the author of this mid-term review of the achievements of the Spanish Presidency.

The Belgian EU Presidency has faced a number of tough challenges. These include reaching an agreement on the new initiatives about the EU:s economic decision-making system as well as handling the continuous economic crisis.

In the Lisbon Treaty, the EU committed itself to the creation of a European "social market economy". But the European legislation that would be required to promote this goal still depends on qualified majorities in the Council and will therefore easily be blocked by the veto of member states preferring a "liberal market economy", argues the author of this new analysis within the SIEPS research project Social Europe.