EU direct democracy dawns

If you want to change something in Europe, you'll need a raft of tools at your disposal. And it certainly won't be straightforward.

First, you need supporters with voting rights in at least six European Union states, as well as your own. You then have to form a citizens' committee, which you register with the EU Commission - because the Commission is the only body that can actually propose laws in the end, which then have to be approved by the European Parliament and the European Council. 

Legal loophole

But it's a good idea to check the legalities of your initiative before you take the first step.

Citizens' initiatives are only possible if Brussels is in fact the right forum for your concern.

Some cases are clear cut - questions on customs issues or exports are dealt with by the EU. But education issues are handled exclusively by the individual states. Other cases are a little more complicated. Smoking bans, for instance, have been introduced on a national level, but the EU passed a Europe-wide ban on tobacco advertizing.

If, however, it's not a law you want to change, but there's something you want to complain about, you have two alternatives: you can start a petition or lodge a complaint with the European Ombudsman. Don't forget to include exactly which paragraph in the EU treaties is the one which is exactly relevant for your case.

Don't forget the budget

The next thing you have to do is declare who's backing your initiative - at least, any sponsor who is supporting you with more than 500 euros ($670) per year.

In addition, you will need signatures from one million people. That means, if you have 1,000 supporters, each of them has to persuade another thousand people to join your cause within a year. That's about three new people every day.

You'll need a lot of people and a lot of time, and that means a lot of money. So without sponsors, you are unlikely to get far.

Don't forget data protection

Now you've fulfilled the initial criteria and your initiative has been registered by the EU Commission - and you start collecting signatures from supporters - with names, addresses, dates of birth and nationality.

You can do it on paper or online. But in either case, you have to ensure that the data you collect is only used for the purpose of gaining support for your initiative, and that all this data is later destroyed.

The EU Commission can provide you with the software, or you can use your own. But if data is mishandled or lost, you're the one who will be held responsible.

One million supporters in seven states

While it's only necessary to find supporters in seven of the EU's 27 states, the minimum number of supporters required in each state varies depending on the population figures.

In Germany, for example, the minimum number of required signatures is 74,000. In Malta, it's 4,500. In each state, national authorities are required to certify your list of signatures.

When everything is complete, the EU Commission then decides whether or not to take on your proposal. If it does, it enters the normal process of making European law: the Commission presents it to the Parliament and Council. And if they accept it, and if all goes well, it's possible that your citizens' initiative could become law within two years.      

Author: Daphne Grathwohl / za
Editor: Michael Lawton