Equality of treatment Public Services

Transkriptio

1 Equality of treatment Public Services Providing high-quality Public Services in Europe based on the values of Protocol 26 (TFEU), Warsaw Kristian Siikavirta, Doctor of Law

2 University of Helsinki Finland - Law Faculty

3 Different aspects of equal treatment Protocol 26 is somewhat vague 1. Equal treatment of service providers Articles 45(4), 51, 56, 57 TFEU 2. Equality between users National and EU sectoral legislation Equality of individuals and genders EU directives and national legislation 3. Real equality between citizens and firms

4 Equal treatment of (private) service providers Freedom of establishment Article 49 TFEU The right to carry on an economic activity in one or more Member States Freedom to provide services Article 56 TFEU,, Article 16 Dir 2006/123/EC Right to provide services on a temporary basis in another Member State, without having to be established Many derogations, Article 17,

5 Freedom to provide services equal treatment Services directive 2006/123/EC Open up market for some services Free establishment, free service provision States are not allowed to limit user rights Article 19, 20, foreign service is to be allowed Procurement directive 2004/18/EC Article 2, general principle Equal and non-discriminatory treatment of firms Does equal treatment favour large international companies?! What kind of a value is that?

6 User equality - Three steps of analysis What is the nature of public service? Service Public What is equality problem in public service? Fiscal equivalence Distributional equivalence Real equivalence What response?

7 Service = not goods, capital, persons (labour) Legal definition of goods, Case 7/68 Commission v. Italy, [1968] ECR, 423, Products, can be valued in money, and are capable, as such, of forming the subject of commercial transactions e.g. food, books, clothing, electricity Article 57 TFEU and Court Services means services provided against payment e.g. hotels, financial services, insurance, transport, lottery

8 Real elements of a service on market In-tangible Education, health, cultural events Non-transferable Personal, situational Inseparable Heterogenius Market for services?!

9 Taxonomy of goods and services -> basis for public intervention Difficulty of excluding potential beneficiaries Ostrom (2005), s. 24 Substractability of use Low High Low Toll goods Private goods High Public goods Commonpool resources Institution for providing public good, common-pool resource!

10 Basic characteristics of public services Legal rules form the market structure Excluding persons is not possible (individual right) Substractability should not be present Result -> Public responsibility, production Equality by public producers Public producer is easier control Private firms do not pursue equality between persons Private firms discriminate customers Price differentation and willingness to pay

11 Education as a public service in Finland Municipalities provide basic education Children 7 15 years of age There are also private schools Funding from the state Legal institution No exclusion, no subtractability Big differences between municipalities In costs In the size of study groups Not in results though!

12 Internet broadband connection Universal service obligation, 1 Mb Building costs are allowed to be differentiated Building cost up to euro/km Connection cost may be prohibitive USO meaningless

13 Health care and inequalities Blue/white-collar workers Differences in life-expetcancy (6 years) Differences in healthy life-expectancy (13 years) Formal equality is present Informal legal-institutional setting Municipal health care for low income individuals Occupational and private health care for middle and high income individulas