Europe for Citizens

n the previous Politeia Newsletter, it was said that the European Commission adopted in April 2005 the proposal for a new programme ‘Citizens for Europe’ 2007 – 2013 to promote active European Citizenship. On the 5th of April 2006, the Committee on Culture and Education of the European Parliament presented its report on the proposal, and it was approved by the European Parliament with 437 votes for, 92 against and 51 abstentions.

Backing

The report by MEP Takkula gave a broad backing to the new Community programme designed to strengthen ties and foster a sense of cohesion between the citizens of the European Union, following the low turnout at the last European elections and the No votes in two referenda on the European constitution. This first reading report proposed to reverse the terms in the programme’s title by calling it Europe for Citizens instead of Citizens for Europe.

Actions

The European Commission had proposed three ‘actions’: Active Citizens for Europe, Active Civil Society in Europe and Together for Europe. MEPs wish to add a fourth - Active European Remembrance - consisting of support for projects to commemorate the victims of Nazi and Stalinist mass deportation and mass extermination. The programme will also cover:

• town twinning, including - at the wish of MEPs - twinning of sports clubs, for which purpose several references to amateur sports clubs are added to the legislation;
• transnational and cross-sectoral citizens’ projects;
• support for think-tanks and civil society bodies at European level, such as the Jean Monnet Association, the Robert Schuman European Centre and, following an amendment by MEPs, the Maisons de l’Europe;
• high-profile events organised by or with the European Commission.

Costs

The cost of the programme for the period 2007-2013 will be €235 million, which should be regarded as a minimum according to MEPs. The maximum period for granting funding at any one time should be three years, to prevent the beneficiaries becoming dependent on it, says the committee.

Immigrants

MEPs also stress that encouraging active citizenship is crucial in the fight against racism, xenophobia and intolerance, and in promoting integration, cohesion and democracy. In line with this, the programme should also be open to citizens of non-EU countries who have permanent residence rights in the European Union.

Council

On the 18th of May 2006, the Council of the European Union reached political agreement on a draft common position. The Council confirmed that the aim of the programme is to safeguard the continuity of the ongoing programme on civic participation. As proposed, the programme aims specifically to:

• promote the mobility of citizens across Europe by bringing them together, in particular at local community level, to share and exchange experiences, opinions and values, to learn from history and to build for the future;
• foster action, debate and reflection related to European citizenship through cooperation between civil society organisations at European level;
• make the idea of Europe more tangible for its citizens by promoting and celebrating Europe’s values and achievements, while preserving the memory of its past;
• encourage the balanced integration of citizens and civil society organisations from all Member States, contributing towards intercultural dialogue and bringing to the fore both Europe’s diversity and unity, with particular attention for activities with Member States that have recently joined the European Union.

The Council confirmed furthermore that the proposed programme comprises, inter alia, actions such as town-twinning, support for research into and consideration of European policies, support for commemorations or for Europe-wide awards. The text agreed upon by the Council on the 18th of May 2006 will be adopted as a common position by a forthcoming Council and sent to the European Parliament with a view to its second reading.

More information

The procedure of the decision making process can be followed through the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/prelex/detail_dossier_real.cfm?CL=en&DosId=192736#378264

The report by the Committee on Culture and Education of the European Parliament on the proposal can be found at: www.europarl.europa.eu/omk/sipade3?PUBREF=-//EP//NONSGML+REPORT+A6-2006-0076+0+DOC+WORD+V0//EN&L=EN&LEVEL=2&NAV=S&LSTDOC=Y

More information on the promotion of Active European Citizenship and the current programme and calls for proposals of the European Commission can be found on: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/activecitizenship/index_en.htm

Judith Baltus, Instituut voor Publiek en Politiek, Amsterdam