On Friday 17 June, the European Commission presented a first analysis of the recommendations of the Conference on the Future of Europe. The first concrete measures will be unveiled in mid-September, during the State of the Union address of its President, Ursula von der Leyen, and integrated into the 2023 work programme.
The European Commissioner for Democracy, Dubravka Šuica, stressed the importance of deepening European democracy to convince European citizens that they can “influence European policy-making”. Her counterpart at European Values, Věra Jourová, said that it was necessary “not to disappoint the expectations” of the conference participants, who demanded stronger rules to defend the rule of law.
“For this assessment to be credible, it is essential to stick to the spirit and the letter of what is proposed – without any re-interpretation or selection”, the Commission said in its communication. It stresses that it will not hesitate to make use of its right of initiative after an impact assessment of the possible options, in compliance with the principle of subsidiarity.
In the annex to its communication, the EU institution classifies the Conference proposals according to the nine themes that were discussed at the Conference. Among these proposals, it identifies those for which it has already taken an initiative, those for which an initiative is planned within the framework of the current treaties, and those which correspond to new ideas that may themselves require a revision of the treaties.
Involve citizens more. In order to keep the citizens who participated in the Conference informed about how their recommendations have been taken into account, a specific follow-up event will be organised in the autumn.
In addition, drawing on the experience of the Conference, the Commission indicates that it will include citizens’ panels in its work to prepare major legislative proposals, without specifying which ones. Pan-European or more targeted, these panels will be made up of randomly selected citizens who are representative of society, with a strong emphasis on young people. They will be tasked with deliberating and making recommendations compiled in a report prior to the introduction of legislative initiatives.
According to Ms Šuica, “health, defence and security” are among the areas concerned. “This is new: we are introducing participatory democracy into the policy-making process”, she insisted.
In addition, the Commission announces that the ‘Have your say’ portal will be expanded to become “a new ecosystem of democratic engagement”, which will allow any European citizen to get involved, exchange views in forums, answer surveys and even organise participatory events.
Revision of the treaties? As Ms von der Leyen has already indicated, the Commission is “open” to an institutional review. It will “always be on the side of those who want to reform the European Union to make it work better, including through Treaty change where that may be necessary”.
In this spirit, it supports the European Parliament’s initiative to ask the EU Council to decide on the convening of a Convention to amend the Treaties (see EUROPE 12968/17). MEPs will prepare a detailed report on the areas concerned, such as health, defence and the move from unanimity to qualified majority voting in EU Council decisions.
At the European Summit on Thursday 23 and Friday 24 June, the European Council will be invited to discuss the proposals of the Conference on the Future of Europe. According to a draft of the conclusions of 15 June, it will highlight the importance of informing citizens about the follow-up to the Conference recommendations.
See the European Commission’s communication: https://aeur.eu/f/26z
See its annex: https://aeur.eu/f/270
See the preliminary analysis of the Council of the EU: https://aeur.eu/f/23L
See the draft conclusions of the European Council: https://aeur.eu/f/25f (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)