Simecka: Public Involvement in EU Decision-making Should Continue after CoFoE

Simecka: Public Involvement in EU Decision-making Should Continue after CoFoE

Bratislava, March 7 (TASR) – Once the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) is over, a mechanism regularly involving the public in decision-making on EU policies should be set up, European Parliament Vice-chair Michal Simecka has opined in an interview for TASR.

“Nearly 130,000 Europeans with diverse views and professional experience from all EU-member countries have taken part in the Conference events – a response to populists who are trying to undermine our cohesion with repeated talk about [EU] bureaucrats divorced from reality and dictates from Brussels,” said Simecka.

The CoFoE consists of four citizens’ panels made up of 800 representatives of EU citizens. Each of the panels met three times between September 2021 and February 2022. The panels will present their recommendations to the EP at plenary sessions and these will be included in the final report to be prepared by the CoFoE executive board in the spring.

“When the CoFoE ends in 2022, however, a more regular mechanism should be established at the European level to involve citizens in EU policy-making and decision-making – if its message is to be that politicians and institutions listen to people. The conference should not end up as a one-off activity,” remarked Simecka.