EU to launch 'direct democracy' petitions service

Citizens' initiative system will get central register and website

(AFP/Getty Images)

The EU’s experiment with direct democracy is to get an overhaul from next year as the bloc launches a new centralised website to host petitions to Brussels.

Under the citizens’ initiatives system, one million EU citizens signing a petition to Brussels can trigger lawmaking action by the European Commission on any issue.

But the system has in the past been criticised for being too onerous and bureaucratic, with just four successful initiatives since the system was introduced in 2007.

Member states agreed at a meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday that a new EU website should be set up to streamline the process of filing an initiative.

With the new system, which is expected to come in from January 2020, launching an initiative and collecting signatures will be done via the free central online register – reducing the paperwork campaigns will have to deal with themselves.

The system will also integrate with electronic ID cards so citizens from countries that use them can verify their identity.

Under the citizens’ initiative programme, which was introduced under the Treaty of Lisbon, if a million verified citizens from a quarter of EU countries sign an initiative, the European Commission must consider whether to take legislative action on the measure.

Brussels says this puts the European citizenry on a par with the European Parliament and European Council, who also only have the power to ask the Commission to initiate EU legislation. The Commission is under no obligation to actually legislate in response to a petition, but must examine the issue raised.

Citizens initiatives to have met the bar have included a call for a ban on the fertilizer glyphosate, which hit its target in January 2017. The European Commission however re-approved the fertilizer for use in December 2017. The European Parliament has since also backed a ban; the legislation is set to be reviewed in December 2022.

The existing manual process of registering initiatives will be allowed until 2022 as a transitionary measure.

“This is an important step forward in bringing citizens closer to the European Union,” said George Ciamba, the Romanian minister chairing the Council meeting.

“Presenting requests to EU decision-makers will become easier. I am looking forward to more successful initiatives and more active cross-border debates on European matters thanks to the updated legislation adopted today.