"Subsidiarity permits the decisions on the life in society to be taken from a standpoint that is closer to the citizens. It should be a key element in the elaboration of an alternative speech/talk on power", reported Joseba Fernández, researcher of the Faculty of Law of the university of Navarra, during the third session of the Ethics and Society Forum of the Institute for Culture and Society.  

According to this researcher, subsidiarity proposes that the questions in society should be resolved by the institution that is closer to being able to solve them, whether it is the family or cultural, economic, social or charity associations.   

"This principle is wise in that it fits in well with the reality of man and society because it entails to a conception of man, of power and of government that contributes to improving relationships between the State and the citizens", expressed Joseba Fernández during the session.

Subsidiarity in the European Union

This researcher expressed his disappointment regarding the fact that there is a tendency "to assume much more power on the European Union", even though the principle of subsidiarity is present in the treaties since 1992.  "Many authors complain that, in their desire to create a strong union and to accumulate power for the EU, the European courts seem to forget this principle completely", indicated Joseba Fernández.

With a degree in law from the University of Navarra, Joseba Fernández studied for a Master's degree in the Centro de Estudios Garrigues (Garrigues Center of Studies) and worked as a lawyer in the department of property law in the Clifford Chance office in Madrid.  He later graduated with a Master of Science in Foreign Service from the Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.). He is currently preparing his doctoral thesis in the department of Public Law on the Pamplona campus under the direction of Professor Rafael García Pérez and Juan Carlos Hernández Peña.

The Ethics and Society Forum consists of a series of sessions that involve questions relative to the improvement of life together and society, from an ethical perspective, as well as from the standpoints of judicial theory, economy, political and social philosophy or social sciences in general.

The activity is open to researchers, professors and post graduate students throughout the entire campus. The objective is triple: the idea is to be a vehicle for disseminating the work carried out by the ICS among the university community, promoting interdisciplinary dialogue and helping the ICS investigators to receive feedback on the part of other experts regarding the work they are carrying out.