Tensions exist in the way that the European Union is conceptualised. How do we reconcile the persistence of a Europe of fragmented nation-states and the European integration project based on the principle of free movement? This duality is indicative of different geographical visions: between space defined as places and space defined as unifying flows. While places tend to be associated with fixed territories and borders, it is argued that complex global flows and connections may disrupt such notions. Addressing these theoretical tensions, this thesis examines transnational frameworks for discussing the reconfiguration of borders and spaces within the European Union. The aim of this research is to explore the extent to which European Union citizens, with freedom of movement, experience mobility between member states in a frictionless manner. The thesis adopts a “bottom-up” approach of migrants’ experiences and perceptions of internal borders, as barriers or opportunities to their movement and settlement. This is illustrated through the case of Britons resident in France. The thesis draws on data generated through qualitative methods, including fifty-three in-depth interviews undertaken in an ethnographic setting. The case study demonstrates how a frictionless European space does not exist for ordinary European Union citizens, for a variety of political, legal, economic and socio-cultural reasons. The analysis reveals how Britons recreate (national) state borders, by adapting to French politico-legal structures, and identifying boundaries between “us” and “them”. The thesis also identifies how transnational spaces are created through immigrants’ social networks. By exploring the everyday lives of intra-EU migrants, the thesis contributes to literature on British migrants in France, and provides an original contribution to studies of EU integration, focused on ordinary citizens on the move.

Studiens syfte var att undersöka hur socialsekreterare tolkar begreppet uppehållsrätt när EU-medborgare ansöker om försörjningsstöd. Intersektionellt perspektiv användes för att belysa maktförhållanden mellan socialsekreterare som representatner för svenska myndigheter och klienter med utländsk härkomst. I studien användes domar från svenska förvaltningsrätter som analyserades med kvalitativ diskursanalys. Resultat kategoriserades in i kategorier som rörde socialsekreteres tolkningar av uppehållsrätten, omständigheter avgörande för bedömning av uppehållsrätten och socialsekreterares tolkningar av EU-medborgares rätt till försörjningsstöd. Data om EU-medborgares medborgarskap och kön samlades in för att undersöka deras eventuella påverkan på utfall av ansökan om försörjningsstöd. Analys av resultat visade signifikant inkonsekvens i såväl socialsekreterares tolkningar av uppehållsrätten som i tillämpning av relevanta lagar. EU-medborgares rättigheter till försörjningsstöd nekades på grund av att EU-medborgare bedömdes vara "ekonomiskt icke aktiva personer" eller inte ansågs ha "en verklig möjlighet till att få anställning". Varken EU-medborgares medborgarskap eller kön kunde kopplas till utfall av deras ansökan om försörjningsstöd. / The purpose of this study was to examine how social workers interpret right of residence when EU-citizens apply for social assistance by claiming their residential rights. The intersectional perspective was used as a theoretical approach in order to illustrate power relationship between social workers as representatives for Swedish authorities and clients of foreign origin. Using appeal documents from Swedish administrative courts as a study material and a qualitative discourse analysis as a data collection method the results were classified into categories concerning social workers’ interpretations of right of residence, circumstances considered by social workers as crucial for right of residence and social workers interpretations of EU-citizens’ entitlement to social assistance. Data regarding EU-citizens’ nationalities and gender were collected in order to identify their possible influence on outcome of their applications. Analysis of results identified a significant inconsistency in social workers’ interpretations of right of residence as well as in application of the law. EU-citizens’ entitlement to social assistance was denied on terms of EU-citizens being “economically inactive persons” or not having “a real chance to get an employment”. Neither EU-citizens nationalities nor gender could be linked to outcomes of their applications for social assistance.

In recent years EU-citizens living in poverty exercising their right to free movement within EU have gained increased political interest. Some vulnerable EU citizens travel to Sweden in order seek livelihood, some of them engage in begging. The presence of vulnerable EU citizens engaged in begging has generated the emergence of a new policy area with increased political activity at both national and municipal level. Here, a state public report, policy proposals and problematization of the issue at municipal level are analysed. The analysis reveal how begging is constructed as a social problem and how the vulnerable EU citizen is positioned. The political discourse in this policy area is characterized by securitization and individualisation of responsibility, begging is problematized based on notions of welfare nationalism. People who beg are positioned as undeserving and associated with criminality, with few exceptions, the social rights approach is silenced. Begging is mainly constructed as an individual problem and linked to personal deficiencies. Thus, the structural issues such as inequality, discrimination and poverty are also subordinated in the political discourse. Further, the analysis exposes that human rights issues are not taken into account when policies targeting begging are formulated.

The avocado production and trade impose economic, social and environmental challenges for producers, and concerns for consumers. This ‘sustainability challenge’ will be analysed from a social- psychological viewpoint. The case study follows a two-method based approach: a combination of qualitative and quantitative research. Laws and restrictions on the avocado production in Mexico exist, still, avocados are not sustainable. The reasons are unveiled by a closer look into the trade agreements and by interviews with the Mexican civil society. The responsibility for the implementation of controls on sustainable avocados is pushed in a circle from the governments to civil society and back. Ideas on how to change the system are mainly based on EU citizens. Can a greater knowledge and awareness of EU citizens improve the sustainable avocado production in Mexico? The survey reveals that only few participants are fully informed and highly interested in eco-friendly produced avocados. The low percentage can be explained through the high costs for certified avocados, the mistrust in the certification system and the lack of the certified fruit in the supermarkets. However, after some background information the participants stated that they would change their behaviour: buying certified avocados, spending more money and going to special supermarkets. To raise awareness and clarify doubts, civil society in Mexico suggested campaigns in cooperation with civil society in the EU. The idea for the campaign is based on behaviourist theories. A further step is a cooperation between EU citizens with civil societies from Mexico and the EU to pressure the government into a system change to support the offer of cheaper certified sustainable avocados in the EU supermarkets, and thus to raise the standards and controls for the avocado production.

Flera studier har uppmärksammat att utsatt EU-medborgare i Sverige många gånger blir offer för hot, trakasserier och våldsbrott till följd av deras sårbara livssituation och nedsatta tillgång till skydd i landet. Denna studie syftar till att undersöka hur utsatta EU- medborgare upplever och hanterar risker för våld, hot och kränkande behandling. Datan består av kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer med sju utsatta EU-medborgare i Umeå kommun. I studien har två teorier använts för att analysera materialet vilka är stigma samt aktiva och passiva copingstrategier. Dessa har använts för att ge en djupare analys av hur copingstrategier sammanhänger med upplevelser av stigmatisering. Resultatet visar att de utsatta EU-medborgarna upplever att de till följd av deras ursprung från Rumänien förknippas med negativa egenskaper och riskerar att bli föremål för diskriminering och kränkande behandling. Det framkommer att gruppen på olika sätt måste förhålla sig till sitt stigma vilket begränsar deras handlingsutrymme och vilka strategier de har tillgång till för att hantera erfarenheter och oro av att utsättas för kränkande behandling. Resultatet visar att hur väl man har lyckats frigöra sig från den egna gruppen får tillgång till fler aktiva strategier. En slutsats från studien är att strategierna gruppen använder bör förstås utifrån dimensionen stigmatisering och förslagsvis benämnas som anpassade strategier, det vill säga där man agerar i en kontext av underordning och på olika sätt förhåller sig till stigmat. / Several studies have noted that vulnerable EU citizens in Sweden often become victims of threats, harassment and violent crimes due to their vulnerable life situation and reduced access to protection. This study aims to examine how vulnerable EU citizens experience and manage risks of violence, threats and abusive treatment. The data consists of qualitative semi- structured interviews with seven vulnerable EU citizens in Umeå municipality. In this study, two theories have been used to analyze the results which are stigma as well as active and passive coping strategies. These have been used to provide a deeper analysis of how coping strategies are associated with experiences of stigmatization. The results show that vulnerable EU citizens feel that they, as a result of their origin from Romania, are associated with negative characteristics and are at risk of discrimination and abusive treatment. It appears that the group must relate in various ways to their stigma, which limits their range of options and the strategies available to them, to deal with experience and fear of being subject to abusive treatment. The results show that people who manage to free themselves from the group get access to more active strategies. A conclusion from the study is that the understanding of strategies used by vulnerable EU citizens should include the dimension of stigmatization and be referred to as adaptive strategies, that is, where one acts in a context of subordination and in different ways must relate to the stigma.

More and more Swedish municipalities are adopting approaches that target ‘vulnerable EU citizens’ and the ‘passive collection of money’. This thesis analyses begging permits, bans, and other approaches, motivated by the positions supported in Eskilstuna, Katrineholm and Norrköping. The approaches analysed are irrespective of the municipalitiesthat implemented them. This thesis follows a ‘problem’ questioning approach, taking into consideration the context and the system under which the ‘problems’ are constructed and aims to find the implicit and explicit aims of the various approaches.

Romani people came to Sweden in the early 16th century and is today acknowledged as a minority group. Today in Sweden there’s a large group of Roma EU-citizens who come to beg. Romani people has been an exposed and discriminated group since their arrival in Sweden – a pattern that’s still relevant regarding Roma EU-citizens coming today. One profession that faces Roma EU-citizens in their work is social workers. This study aims to describe and analyse how social workers experience working with Roma EU-citizens, what difficulties or opportunities they see and how this work can be developed in the future. Furthermore, the study examines what beliefs social workers feel exists in society surrounding this group. The study uses labelling theory and theories of cultural competence. Six interviews were conducted with social workers and the study uses a qualitative approach and a hermeneutic perspective. Study results indicate that cultural differences affects working with the group. Results also show that the social workers feel there’s a lot of prejudice against the group. The study concludes that cultural competence is important in order to perform a good social work with the Romani group. Another conclusion is that structural problems complicates working with the group.

The aim of this work is to analyze the dynamics of attitudes towards the European Union in the Czech Republic on the basis of the data file from the project "Aktér", which has been realized by the Department of Sociology Faculty of Arts since 1999. In recent years, public euro-skepticism in attitudes of the population of all EU member countries has emerged. The same for the Czech Republic, as evidenced by periodic public opinion surveys (eg Eurobarometer and CVVM). The European Union is perceived negatively by the efforts to intervene in the affairs of nation states. On the other hand, EU brings many new possibilities and opportunities but they are accepted and used selectively. Specific socio-demographic, economic and political characteristics of people differentiate the perception of the European Union. This work reveals whether the skepticism towards the EU is universal phenomenon in the Czech Republic or whether there are population groups that are consistently positive towards a united Europe, and why. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

The question concerning vulnerable EU-citizens has been widely debated in Sweden the last few years. Due to unclear legislation and strong municipal self-determination municipalities act differently regarding vulnerable EU-citizens. The purpose for the dissertation is therefore to analyse how Stockholm and Gothenburg City acts and collaborates with non-profit organisations in the question concerning vulnerable EU-citizens and whether the approaches can, according to the theory of territorial governance, be viewed as effective. The dissertation has showed that Gothenburg City has created a common action plan with surrounding municipalities in order to expand their territory. Gothenburg have also signed an IOP-agreement with several non-profit organisations in order for them to act together. The dissertation has showed that an IOP-agreement can be equated to an effective and sustainable partnership. Stockholm City on the other hand has not expanded their territory, since an equivalent interpretation of the law is important to the municipality. No IOP-agreement has been signed and a reason for this could be that the relationship between non-profit organisations in Stockholm City has historically been characterized by competition instead of trust. Due to the complex question concerning vulnerable EU-citizen, new forms of partnership has though been developed in Stockholm City.

Introduction: Vulnerable European Union citizens (vulnerable EU citizens) are those who come to Sweden from EU member states. In Sweden the term “vulnerable EU citizens” is associated with the word “beggars”, which in turn is associated with Roma people. By November 2015 the number of vulnerable EU citizens in Sweden was estimated to be 4 700. The majority of these were from Romania. Roma as citizens of an EU member state have the right to reside in EU countries in accordance with the EU’s freedom of movement rights concept for up to but no longer than three months. However, to obtain the right for residence after three months, proof of financial resources and health insurance are required. Lacking these resources, vulnerable EU citizens have subsequently lost their right for residence and therefore became undocumented. They often find themselves in the same situation as undocumented migrants from outside the EU, having poor health outcomes and limited access to health care. In my study I aim to explore access to health care for vulnerable EU citizens in Umeå, a city in eastern Sweden. Methods: A qualitative design methodology has been applied in this thesis. Those contacted for this study were; Doctors of the World, Health on Equal Terms, Staff for planning and control Västerbotten Region, University Hospital of Umeå and representatives of vulnerable EU citizens’ community from Romania in Umeå. Seven in-depth interviews were collected with professionals and volunteers from these organisation/institutions and members of vulnerable EU citizens’ community. Questions were asked about their experience and knowledge regarding access to health care for vulnerable EU citizens. Data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: Three main categories and one final theme were developed during data analysis. The first category “Difficult to access health care for vulnerable EU citizens in Sweden without European Health Insurance” elaborates the dependence of vulnerable EU citizens’ access to health care on having health insurance, specifically European Health Insurance and National Health Insurance. It also describes what kind of access to health care vulnerable EU citizens have in Sweden. The second category “Decision about how much access to health care provide for vulnerable EU citizens lies on medical personnel” discusses the situation of health care personnel when they treat vulnerable EU citizens in hospitals. The third category “Organisations, Doctors of the World and Health on Equal Terms, mediate connection between vulnerable EU citizens and hospitals, so they can have their right to health fulfilled” elaborates about the role the organisation plays when vulnerable EU citizens are in need of health care. After grouping categories and looking at the data from more interpretive, abstracted higher level, the final theme was created “Lack of attention from the national and international levels to the situation of vulnerable EU citizens’ access to health care”. Conclusion: This study highlights the difficulty for vulnerable EU citizens to access health care in Umeå if they do not have European Health Insurance. Being treated as undocumented migrants is the only way they have access to emergency services. Health care personnel feel insecure when treating vulnerable EU citizens, because there are no clear guidelines when vulnerable EU citizens can be treated as undocumented migrants as well as what is included in the clause “the care that cannot wait”. Because of this situation, vulnerable EU citizens sometimes are not able to receive the medical help they need. Organisations, Doctors of the World and Health on Equal Terms, help to mediate the connection between vulnerable EU citizens and hospitals which helps them to access the health care and fulfille their right to health. Lack of attention from the national as well as international governments to this situation is found to be important factor influencing vulneralbe EU citizens’ access to health care