Internal Market Legislation

From an economic point of view, the question whether there is an external dimension to the internal market sounds almost ridiculous. How could, an economist would argue, a policy of economic integration that is as encompassing as the internal market programme and that applies to twelve developed countries which play an important role in international trade not affect trade and economic relations with the outside world? However, from the point of view of law-and policy-making the question could be raised in the early stages, as indeed it has been. One can safely say that until 1988 the attitude of the Community's institutions towards both the external effects of the internal market programme and the relationship between the programme and the Community's external policies was one of benign neglect. The Commission's White Paper contains only a few references to external policies. There is also nothing in the definition of the internal market as laid down in Article 7a, EC Treaty, which provides a link with external relations, and the Single European Act did not amend the EEC Treaty provisions which do deal with this subject (the main ones being those on the Common Commercial Policy). Even the famous Checcini report on the economic effects of 1992 did not take account of the external dimension. The latter was only present in one very specific way: the internal market programme was (and is) clearly also aimed at improving the competitiveness of European industries in the face of Japanese and US competition. But this was only regarded as a strategic motive for the programme, unrelated to its contents, which would merely involve the elimination of barriers in the internal market. It has for example been said that the concept of an internal market, as introduced in Community law by the Single European Act, does not have an external dimension, in contrast with the concept of a common market which includes a Common Customs Tariff and a Common Commercial policy.