(STRASBOURG) – Climate change, the economy, health and social justice were at the heart of a set of 49 proposals to reform the EU, presented on Europe Day Monday in the final report of the Future of Europe conference.
The Conference was launched to allow, by way of a citizens-focused, bottom-up, grass roots exercise, all Europeans to have a say on what they expect from the European Union and have a greater role in shaping the future of the Union.
An unprecedented one-year journey of discussion, debate and collaboration between citizens and politicians culminated in a report centred around 49 proposals that include concrete objectives and more than 320 measures for the EU institutions to follow up on under nine topics: climate change and the environment; health; a stronger economy, social justice and jobs; EU in the world; values and rights, rule of law, security, digital transformation, European democracy, migration, education, culture, youth and sport.
The proposals are based on recommendations made by citizens who met within the European Citizens’ Panels, National Citizens’ Panels and contributed their ideas on the Multilingual Digital Platform.
“The Conference on the Future of Europe, which we are closing today, is a unique exercise and unprecedented in its scope, a breath of fresh air for our continent,” said French President Emmanuel Macron at the closing ceremony: “Its conclusions constitute a very rich source of proposals, which each institution must examine within the framework of its competences.”
The European Parliament, Commission and Council will now examine how to follow up effectively on these proposals, each within their own spheres of competence and in accordance with the Treaties.
A feedback event will take place to update citizens in autumn 2022.
Conference on the Future of Europe - guide