The concept of citizenship in the European Union

Abstract

The Lisbon Treaty contains relatively little that is new as regards the citizenship articles. I propose, therefore, to set the scene with a brief introduction, a little of the history and philosophy on citizenship, then to focus on the changes in the Lisbon Treaty and finally, discuss a number of recent cases in which the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) advances its interpretation of citizenship and non- discrimination, or equality, as a general principle of European Union (EU) law (Art. 9 TEU). This paper discusses some of the legislation which was adopted by the EU, based on the Citizenship Articles in the Treaty of Nice (and originally in the Treaty of Maastricht).