Introduction
The purpose of this lesson is to delve into the practical dimension of EU activities in the field of fostering European culture, with particular emphasis on intangible cultural heritage (ICH). The aim is to raise awareness and sensitivity regarding the EU’s role in promoting and maintaining ICH, while clarifying the distinction between different layers of competences and activities.
For this reason, the principle of subsidiarity is introduced as a key pillar of the EU’s institutional framework. It ensures that responsibilities for safeguarding ICH are shared between local, national, and European levels, while guaranteeing that decisions are made as close as possible to the citizen.
EU Principles
The principles of subsidiarity and proportionality govern the exercise of the EU’s competences.
- Subsidiarity safeguards Member States’ ability to act while allowing EU intervention when objectives cannot be sufficiently achieved by national authorities but can be better realized at Union level.
- The principle ensures that EU powers are exercised as close to the citizen as possible, reinforcing democratic accountability.
Origin and History
- Single European Act (1986): Introduced subsidiarity in environmental policy (without explicit mention).
- Treaty on European Union (Maastricht, 1992): Formally enshrined subsidiarity in EU law.
- Treaty of Amsterdam (1997): Annexed the first binding protocol on subsidiarity and proportionality.
- Treaty of Lisbon (2007): Incorporated subsidiarity into Article 5(3) TEU and added explicit reference to the regional and local dimension. It also empowered national parliaments to monitor subsidiarity through the early warning mechanism.
The principle of subsidiarity was formally enshrined by the TEU, signed in 1992: the TEU included a reference to the principle in the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC). The Single European Act, signed in 1986, had already incorporated a subsidiarity criterion into environmental policy, however, albeit without referring to it explicitly as such. In its judgment of 21 February 1995 (T-29/92), the Court of First Instance of the European Communities ruled that the principle of subsidiarity was not a general principle of law, against which the legality of Community action should have been tested, prior to the entry into force of the TEU.
Without changing the wording of the reference to the principle of subsidiarity in the renumbered Article 5, second paragraph, of the TEC, the Treaty of Amsterdam, signed in 1997, annexed to the TEC a Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality (hereinafter ‘1997 protocol’). The overall approach to the application of the principle of subsidiarity, previously agreed at the 1992 European Council in Edinburgh, thus became legally binding and subject to judicial review via the protocol on subsidiarity.
The Treaty of Lisbon amending the TEU and TEC, signed in 2007, incorporated the principle of subsidiarity into Article 5(3) of the TEU and repealed the corresponding provision of the TEC while retaining its wording. It also added an explicit reference to the regional and local dimension of the principle of subsidiarity. What is more, the Treaty of Lisbon replaced the 1997 protocol with a new Protocol No 2, the main difference being the new role of the national parliaments in ensuring compliance with the principle of subsidiarity (1.3.5).
Definition
independence for a lower authority in relation to a higher body or for a local authority in relation to central government. It therefore involves the sharing of powers between several levels of authority, a principle which forms the institutional basis for federal states.
When applied in the context of the EU, the principle of subsidiarity serves to regulate the exercise of the Union’s non-exclusive powers. It rules out Union intervention when an issue can be dealt with effectively by Member States themselves at central, regional or local level. The Union is justified in exercising its powers only when Member States are unable to achieve the objectives of a proposed action satisfactorily and added value can be provided if the action is carried out at Union level.
Three preconditions for EU intervention under Article 5(3) TEU are:
- The area does not fall within EU exclusive competence.
- The objectives cannot be satisfactorily achieved by Member States alone.
- Action at EU level can add greater value due to scale or effects.
Scope and Application
1. The demarcation of Union competences
The principle of subsidiarity applies only to areas in which competence is shared between the Union and the Member States. Following the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the competences conferred on the Union have been more precisely demarcated: Part One, Title I, of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) (signed in 2007 and entered into force in 2009) divides the competences of the Union into three categories (exclusive, shared and supporting) and lists the areas covered by the three categories.
2. Where it applies
The principle of subsidiarity applies to all the EU institutions and has practical significance for legislative procedures in particular. The Lisbon Treaty has strengthened the role of both the national parliaments and the Court of Justice in monitoring compliance with the principle of subsidiarity. It not only introduced an explicit reference to the subnational dimension of the subsidiarity principle, but also strengthened the role of the European Committee of the Regions and made it possible, at the discretion of national parliaments, for regional parliaments with legislative powers to be involved in the ex ante ‘early warning’ mechanism.
Source: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/factsheets/en/sheet/7/the-principle-of-subsidiarity
Examples
National recognition of a craft tradition, later proposed for inclusion in the UNESCO ICH Representative List, with EU-level promotion as part of shared European identity.
A local municipality protecting a traditional festival with EU support.
EU funding under Creative Europe for cross-border cultural cooperation, justified by the scale and shared value.
Activities
Students should explore and discuss the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. Following a discussion on their importance and meaning, selected cases (with recommended reference to Lesson 2) should be explored from the perspective of European integration, subsidiarity, proportionality and added value for ICH.