ABSTRACT
The necessity principle must be examined in more detail because it raises a number of interpretation issues. First, as suggested above, the necessity principle and the proportionality principle are closely related. This relation stems from the fact that disproportionate measures are unnecessary to enable the State to achieve its mandatory aims. However, these two principles, while they overlap, are distinct. Indeed, if one says that a particular measure or law is ‘necessary’, then this statement does not say anything about the specific measure that may legitimately be adopted. The proportionality principle, however, discloses some information about the specific measure: it requires the measure to be proportionate to the evil or problem which the adopting State seeks to combat.
