Future of Europe Conference: second Citizens’ Panel meeting (democracy, rights, security). From priorities to proposals

From this afternoon until Sunday 14 November, 200 people will be meeting online for the second European Citizens’ Panel as part of the Conference on the Future of Europe. This working group will focus on European democracy, values and rights, and the rule of law and security. At the first meeting of this Panel in Strasbourg in September, five thematic macro-areas were identified within the general topic which will now be addressed more specifically. Through a specific voting system, citizens have chosen to address the following topics: ensuring rights and non-discrimination; protecting democracy and the rule of law; reforming the EU; building European identity; and strengthening citizens’ participation. For each of these priorities, a number of “challenges” have already been listed - these specific issues will be addressed in the debate beginning today. The aim of this second meeting is to begin to draft concrete proposals for the future of Europe based on the priorities identified. This Panel will still have an in-person meeting (Florence, 10-12 December) to fine-tune the proposals, before presenting them to the Conference Plenary (Strasbourg, 17-18 December). In this month of November, all four Citizens’ Panels will be meeting online to carry out the same work based on their areas of competence. The Panel’s work will be streamed on the European Parliament’s website.
Sarah Numico