Brussels, 18/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - In the second half of October, the Commission will adopt a communication taking stock, one year after its launch, of “Plan D for Democracy, Dialogue and Debate” (see EUROPE 9048). The Commission wanted to use this Plan as its contribution to the pause for reflection on the future of Europe, decided by the European Council in June 2005. Leaving the Constitutional impasse to one side, the Commission proposed to open a wide-ranging debate with European citizens. The October Communication will take stock of the initiatives launched, those whose outcome has been positive and those which have not worked, said the spokesman for Margot Wallström, the Commissioner responsible for information strategy.
Over the coming months, the Commission will, as part of its information and communication strategy, organise a series of European conferences (see EUROPE 9121 and 9122): - opinion polls, 27 October in Madrid; - European citizens' taking ownership of European issues, 10 November in Bergamo (Italy); - the media and new information technology, 4-5 December in Helsinki; - cooperation with Member States on communication, January 2007 in Berlin.