The evolution of European Union criminal law (1957-2012)

Chapter 3 The evolution of European Union criminal law from Amsterdam to
Lisbon: an ever expanding dynamic (1999-2009)
Introduction
This chapter will shed light on the evolution of European Union Criminal Law (ECL) in
its most recent period – the Amsterdam-Lisbon era 382 – and evaluate its patterns, focus
and narratives. It will be shown that ECL continued to be driven by an expansionist
dynamic that could be seen in different dimensions. First and foremost, expansion took
place at an institutional level as the Treaties envisaged further empowerment of the role
of the EU in criminal matters. More specifically, EU actors were empowered, decision
making facilitated and stronger legal acts envisaged. Furthermore, expansion was also
seen at a substantive level as the Treaties considerably enlarged the EU’s competencies.
However, the actual scope of ECL was significantly broader than the one directly
envisaged by the Treaties. This was seen both in political and legal acts and texts, which
tended to frequently extrapolate the scope of ECL as envisaged by primary law.
Consequently, the range of topics addressed and legal measures adopted by the EU was
considerably wider than what was stated in the Treaty of Amsterdam TEU(A). To be
sure, the main focus of ECL continued to be Euro-crime, even if new offences such as
cyber or environmental crime were added. With this expansion of ‘Euro-crime’ and the
offences it encompassed, political and legal rationales underlying the adoption of legal
acts also became increasingly solidified, broader and interlinked. The fight against
organised crime, which already had strong historical roots in ECL, continued to run
through most measures, especially those seeking to approximate the minimum elements
of crime and penalties. Whilst organised crime now had a place in the Treaties, it
continued to be used in a broader manner allowing for the adoption of several measures,
some only indirectly related to organised criminality. Furthermore, the narrative of
protection of EC interests and policies was also considerably enlarged as the focus
moved from the exclusive protection of EC financial interests (and some policies
indirectly via national criminal law) to the protection of other EC policies such as the
environment or transport. Finally, as narratives of criminalisation around the former two
themes developed, concerns over fundamental rights began to surface as an independent
narrative. This focused mostly on the protection of victims’ rights via the adoption of
legislation on this matter which contrasted greatly with the absence of legislative
382 This era covers the period from the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam (ECT(A) and
TEU(A)) until the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon (TEU(L) and TFEU). The Treaty of
Amsterdam was signed on 2 October 1997 and entered into force on 1 May 1999, followed by the
Treaty of Lisbon which was signed on 13 December 2007, and entered into force on 1 December
2009.
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