Future of Europe Conference: EU Parliament calls for more involvement from national Parliaments and flexibility over duration

“We want to strengthen the involvement of the national Parliaments as an important fourth pillar” of the Conference on the Future of Europe, alongside the European Parliament, Council and Commission. This is according to a statement signed by the leaders of the political groups of the European Parliament which calls on the Executive Board to guarantee that the Conference Plenary will be “adequately composed” to ensure “representation by all main stakeholders” and “a final say about the outcome”. This is to give the Conference “the utmost legitimacy and effectiveness”. Political leaders, in other words, want the Plenary to be “able to deliberate and make proposals, based on recommendations from the Citizens’ Panels”. The Executive Board will assume responsibility to define the role and composition of the Conference Plenary. Given the delay in the start of the Conference due to the pandemic, Parliament also requests that “any conclusions presented in spring 2022 be preliminary and that the Conference be allowed to continue, if appropriate and consensual”.
Sarah Numico