| Summary: | When the Maastricht Treaty on European Union entered into force in November 1993, everynational of a Member State became, in addition, a citizen of the Union. The provisions concerning citizenshipof the Union were inserted into the Treaty establishing the European Community as a new Part Two of theTreaty (Articles 8 to 8e). Hence they are firmly anchored in Community law. The public authorities withwhich citizens are most likely to have personal contact are bodies carrying out administrative tasks. Inrelation to Community law and policies administrative tasks are carried out partly by Community institutionsand bodies and partly by public authorities in the Member States. From the standpoint of the citizen, theadministrative activity of public authorities, at the Community level as well as at the national level, has threemain aspects. First, it may involve restrictions or interference with private rights that normally enjoy legalprotection, such as property or privacy. Second, the administration provides benefits that an individual citizenmay wish to acquire such as subsidies, enforcement of his rights against third parties, or a job. Third,administrative bodies aim to provide public services which are of general benefit. All these aspects will bedescribed and analyzed in this paper.
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