Solidarity and the Crisis of Values in the European Union

Looking at Article 2 TEU, this contribution considers that there is an external and an internal crisis of values: the former referring to challenges to EU values coming from individual Member States which prioritize their own agendas and the latter referring to the tension between a liberal and more solidarity-driven understanding of the EU’s foundations as it stems from the very wording of Article 2 TEU. In an attempt to unpack solidarity and offer a better understanding of its nature, scope and legal implications for the EU and its Member States, this contribution proceeds as follows: first, it studies solidarity within a specific methodological and theoretical framework based on a ‘structured network of EU principles’ established by the CJEU in the post-Lisbon era. Second, it operates under the assumption that a holistic understanding of EU solidarity requires us to go beyond the dominant form of solidarity based on the relationship between Member States (‘interstate solidarity’) and to explore the relationships between individuals (‘interpersonal solidarity’). Our key argument is that a larger institutional recognition of ‘interpersonal solidarity’ has the potential to put the social question more squarely on the table and, as such, to enable the EU to better address the polycrisis it is facing. A ‘Scellian approach’ to EU solidarity - which places the person at the heart of the theoretical framework and as the real subject of solidarity is useful to adopt as a source of inspiration in such an endeavour.