ABSTRACT
Most European legal systems know an often constitutionally enshrined professional civil service characterised by a special relationship of loyalty to the State. Civil servants frequently enjoy privileges related to their constitutional function, while they may be subject to far-reaching duties of devotion to the community. In the light of recent democratic backsliding and erosion of the rule of law in some European countries, a professional civil service can act as a guardian against illiberal tendencies and help uphold democracy and the supremacy of the constitution. This, however, requires that civil servants be, to a certain extent, independent on a personal and institutional level. Against this background, the fact that in recent decades many European countries have chosen to entrust a variety of tasks originally performed by civil servants to employees under regular labour law should be questioned. A necessary level of independence of the civil service is particularly important with regard to the exercise of sovereign powers, such as those of the police, the armed forces, and the judiciary.
