European Parliament agrees Citizen’s Initiative
January 11 2011, 11:02am
On 15th December 2010, MEP's gave the green light to the Citizens’ Initiative, which will make it possible for one million citizens or more to demand new EU legislative acts. Member States will adapt their legislation by the end of 2011 to facilitate this.
The agreed procedure is as follows: to start matters, a committee of at least seven citizens need to approach the Commission to register the request for an initiative. It is the Commission that will determine its admissibility, basing itself on the EU Treaty. If the petition is admissible and collects at least one million signatures, its initiators will have the right to be received by the Commission and to take part in a public hearing. However, in accordance with the Treaty, the Commission will be the sole judge of the possibility of giving a legislative follow-up to a citizens’ initiative (it will reply within three months). All support of a political, financial, associated, religious, national or international nature may be provided, but needs to be totally transparent: those who are asked to sign must know what lies behind this.
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