Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-12-15-Speech-3-111"
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"en.20101215.6.3-111"2
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".
Madam President, Mr Šefčovič, ladies and gentlemen, it has already become clear this morning during the debate on the forthcoming European Council meeting that we have a problem of legitimacy within the European Union. Its roots lie primarily in the fact that policy all too often bypasses the day-to-day interests of the citizens. They rightly expect to be more involved in policymaking. The protests taking place in numerous EU countries are an eloquent expression of this. The introduction of the European citizens’ initiative, which we are voting on today, means that for the first time in the history of the EU there will be an instrument that allows the citizens of Europe to express their expectations and requirements directly, to launch initiatives immediately, to follow them up and to participate directly in policymaking.
The current regulation is good, but my group is of the opinion that it could and should have been even better. Whether the citizens and residents of Europe will really use the citizens’ initiative will ultimately depend on us here in Parliament. How seriously are we taking our self-imposed commitment to support the necessary open approach? Will we be prepared and in a position in three years’ time to stand up to the Council and the Commission about the further development of the initiative? The subjects are already laid down in the current regulation and we want to vote on these points again today. The value of the citizens’ initiative will not be measured in terms of the interinstitutional compromise reached between the Council and the Commission, but in terms of whether it is really used. The fact that today’s result is significantly better – and I would like to thank specifically Mrs Gurmai, Mrs Wallis, Mr Lamassoure and Mr Häfner for working closely together and making such good progress on refining this regulation – is also due to the many members of civil society who have subjected our considerations and our debates to repeated reality and practicability checks. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank them.
I am calling on the citizens of Europe to take the initiative."@en1
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