Engaging Local and Regional Authorities in decision making, embracing the principle of subsidiarity, making use of participatory democracy as well as listening to citizens and acting on their aspirations were the key points raised by EPP-CoR members during a debate on the conclusions of the High-Level group on the Conference on the Future of Europe.
Herman Van Rompuy, Chair of the CoR High Level Group on European Democracy said that democracy must once again become a conversation in which people listen to each other and respect must prevail. He added that local and regional authorities have the opportunity to make a unique and crucial contribution to the Conference on the Future of Europe as they are the closest to the citizens.
Apostolos Tzitzikostas, CoR President and President of Central Macedonia (Greece) said that the Conference on the Future of Europe is an extraordinary opportunity to bring the EU closer to its citizens and to strengthen their sense of ownership in the European project. "The conference is an occasion to build the European House of Democracy, with local and regional authorities as its foundations, Member States as its walls and the EU as its roof."
Dr. Igor Senčar, State Secretary for Coordination of International and EU Affairs in the Office of the Prime Minister of Slovenia said that European democracy, values, rights and the rule of law are the foundations of the European Union. He added that the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU is committed to ensuring that these values continue to be reflected in concrete EU policies, including in the process of the Conference on the Future of Europe. Addressing the CoR plenary, Senčar said "At the forefront of the Conference's final recommendations on the future of the EU is a serious ambition to improve EU policies for the benefit of its citizens and for all European institutions to ensure that meaningful and legitimate proposals are implemented. We thank the CoR, European cities, regions and municipalities for their contribution and strong voice in the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe and beyond."
Renaud Muselier, President of the South Region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and Deputy President of the Regions of France said that local representatives are the key stepping stone to rethink and build tomorrow's European democracy. He stressed "This will be our message at the 9th European Summit of Regions and Cities in Marseille. More than ever, Europe's future needs to be built with local and regional authorities."
Mark Speich, Secretary of State for Federal, European and International Affairs (North Rhine-Westphalia) stressed the need to bring back the EU closer to the people. "This cannot be fulfilled in any other way than by strengthening the regional level in European policy. Therefore, a strengthening of the regional and municipal level will be indispensable for the Europe of the future. The regions, and in particular the CoR, are also ready to take on more responsibility in the future."
Strengthening democracy by engaging citizens
Emil Boc, Mayor of Cluj-Napoca pointed out that democracy and democratic values are not for sale. He added that local and regional authorities have a central role to play in promoting democracy at local level through the various mechanisms of participatory governance. Therefore, citizens are always part of the decision-making process and not just during elections.
Ratislav Trnka, Chairman of Košice Self – Governing Region spoke on engagement of citizens through citizens' councils. "It is also through citizens' councils that we demonstrate the principle of subsidiarity in practice. That is why we want to give these bodies the weight and importance they deserve at national level as well."
Subsidiarity must be at the core of European democracy
Franz Schausberger, Former Governor of Salzburg remarked that The EU must push harder to enforce the principle of subsidiarity and strengthen the role of regions and municipalities in Member States. Moreover, he called for a mechanism for the inclusion of LRAs in enlargement countries.
Bert Häggblom added "The Conference is a matter of implementing the principle of subsidiarity as something that guides us. We must implement the principle of subsidiarity and not just use it in our speeches. Subsidiarity must be at the core of all local and regional projects."
Listening more to citizens and delivering on their aspirations
József Bérenyi, Vice - Chairman of Trnava Self – Governing Region, said "The European Citizens' Initiative was introduced in the Lisbon Treaty, but it has not been a success, as out of six proposals only two were adopted. We must get some conclusions on the future of these initiatives from the Conference.
Martin Eichtinger, Member of the State Government of Lower Austria said that consultation with citizens shows that they want better security and a stronger role for regional authorities. "From the Conference, we need long-lasting changes, and it is only when these changes have been implemented and we can see the results that the Conference can be considered a success."
In his reaction, Uwe Conradt, Lord mayor of Saarbrücken said that "During the Future Lab I hosted last week, young people from Saarland, Lorraine and Luxembourg developed a common vision for a digital, sustainable and social Europe of tomorrow; a Europe in which we work more together. We must take these youth demands to heart and strive for a continuous, permanent involvement of them in our political decision-making processes, whether at local or European level.”
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