Spending Conditionality : Overcome Dissensus over European Values

Following the Covid-19 crisis, the European Union has developed a strategy to ensure rule of law compliance in certain Member States based on economic and budgetary mechanisms – such as the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the Conditionality Regulation 2020/2092, and the European Semester. Those mechanisms use “spending conditionality”: to benefit from European fundings and in the managing of European funds, Member States have to respect European values, in particular the rule of law. To put it differently, economic and budgetary mechanisms are a means for the European Union of ensuring that reforms and investment implemented at the national level improve the respect for European Values despite a dissensus on them in certain Member States. The Consolidation Citizen Forum will therefore explore how economic and budgetary mechanisms are used to promote liberal democracy. It will bring together citizens, researchers and experts, including EU and Member States representatives and civic leaders active in the promotion of European Values. Participants will discuss innovative economic governance practices by focusing on four of them: equality and non-discrimination, solidarity, justice, and democracy.