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Brian Francis Collins [2004]
June 2, 2007 | Leave a Comment
In the Collins case, the applicant possessed dual Irish – American nationality and in May 1998, moved to the UK in order to find work in the social services sector. A month later, however, he applied for the jobseeker’s allowance. He was refused because he was not a habitual UK resident.
The ECJ decided that as national of a Member State, seeking employment in another Member State, he fell within the scope of article 39 EC Treaty and therefore enjoyed a right laid down in article 39(2) EC Treaty to equal treatment in seeking employment.
The ECJ also held that:
“citizens of the Union lawfully resident in the territory of a host Member State can rely on article 12 EC Treaty in all situations which fall within the scope ratione materiae of the Treaty”(para 61).
Accepting that Collins was a EU citizen lawfully residing in the UK upon the terms of article 39(2) EC Treaty, it went on to state that “it is no longer possible to exclude from the scope of article 39(2) EC – which express the fundamental principle of equal treatment, guaranteed by article 12 EC – a benefit of a financial nature intended to facilitate access to employment in the labor market of a Member State”(para 63).
The consequence of this ruling was that any discriminatory national provision that affects the access to the employment market is unlawful. Although it could be argued that a wide interpretation of article 39(2) EC Treaty granted Collins the right to equal treatment in claiming the benefit in question, it is made clear that this right was analyzed in combination with articles 12 and 18 EC Treaty.
Text of the ECJ judgment
Text of the AG opinion