CITIZENSHIP: RULES ON FREE MOVEMENT OF CORPSES ADVOCATED BY COMMISSION.

New ideas.

The Commission said it is considering tabling a proposal on repatriation of mortal remains based on article 18 of the EC Treaty as there are currently no EU rules. Funeral homes have long called for such action because today's plethora of national rules make it very expensive to die abroad (see issue 2845, Section IV). For example, certain rules require zinc coffins for cross-border repatriation. On voting in local elections, the Commission says the next step is to extend this to EFTA countries. Bilateral agreements will be needed to bring this about. EU citizens have the right to vote in their Member State of residence since the 1992 Maastricht Treaty.

Findings.

Problems with enforcing EU citizenship rights arise more from bad application of European and national laws rather than the laws themselves, according to the Commission. It said it has received many complaints about EU citizens forbidded from voting or standing as candidate in national or regional elections because they are not a national of the Member State where they live. There is no legal basis for ensuring EU citizens' suffrage rights for national and regional...