Influence of the ICESCR in Europe

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR or the Covenant) in 2016, this contribution examines the multifaceted positive and negative influences that the ICESCR and the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR or the Committee) have had on domestic law in Europe. It focuses on the Covenant's legal influence in four States (Germany, Russia, Spain, and the United Kingdom), and examines three issues that uncover the broader trends and challenges of this influence: first, it shows that the extent to which the direct effects of the ICESCR have been recognised in the four States reveals positive as well as negative influences of the Covenant in Europe; second, it indicates how the particularities of the political and legal systems of the four countries shape the ICESCR's influence; and third, it tentatively highlights the possibility that the recent financial and economic crises, which have led to far-reaching interferences with economic, social, and cultural rights (ESCR) in Europe and elsewhere, may have nonetheless raised awareness of the ICESCR among a variety of actors – an awareness that could lead to an increased positive influence of the Covenant in the years to come