2006: Bolkestein Directive - a 'Frankenstein' Europe needed?

When he introduced the proposal in 2004, the Dutch commissioner for the internal market, Frits Bolkestein called the move "potentially the biggest boost to the internal market since it was launched in 1993".

It made sense economically, as services accounted for more than two-thirds of economic activity and jobs in the EU, with 450 million consumers.

But the "Services in the Internal Market Directive", later dubbed the 'Bolkestein Directive', also foreshadowed future tensions over ...