MEPs and citizens draw conclusions and react to the proposals of the Conference on the Future of Europe. Almost one year after the launch of the Conference on the Future of Europe, its Plenary meet to conclude its work and reach a consensus on the final set of proposals prepared by the nine Working Groups.

statement

WEBER, Manfred (EPP, DE)

future of the European Union (T)

GARCÍA PÉREZ, Iratxe (S&D, ES)

European citizenship

FREUND, Daniel (Greens/EFA, DE)

conference on the future of Europe (T)

Final Plenary session of the Conference on the Future of Europe: Statements by MEPs and citizens

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/29935136/1651319800781_I224582Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese), Maria, Portuguese citizen, This experience of participatory democracy is to be like a moment to repeat itself. It is not that citizens can be consulted more often on the issues that affect us all, particularly here in Europe. I'm very sorry. Who was I always very enthusiastic about? the process is sometimes a bit slow. Sometimes we move faster. But in terms of the experience that we can draw from here and that it is an absolutely incredible job, to involve all these people to propose now to reach the final, now to propose, to present the proposals that have occupied us during all these months

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese), Maria, Portuguese citizen , I learned that it's hard to work with people we don't know. But it's possible. I learned that the big questions can, after all, have simple answers, as long as there is the political will to implement them. Measures that help us

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Valentina, Italian citizen, This conference changed my life because it opened up a fact for me to know a totally new world, where I never thought I could get there and it changed my approach to politics and also my way of posing myself to people with more security, with more openness, with more availability and curiosity.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Valentina, Italian citizen, I was very involved in this project. I believed in it from the beginning, I still believe in it a lot and so I think that, as was also said in plenary, the real work now begins in spreading the idea of keeping attention alive on the conference and our proposals, because we have only done that we are only at the beginning

SOUNDBITE (English), Manfred WEBER, COFOE, The idea was to listen to citizens and that is now reflected in the document. A lot of the substance distribute are collected by the citizens is now inside of the document and we improved it to be made clear what is now at stake.

SOUNDBITE (English), Manfred WEBER, COFOE , After month and month discussions to be finalised. Now that's good, but we should not stop with this document. The next step is for me, a convention of Europe must change in times of crisis with COVID, but more importantly, with the war in mind, we need to reform ourselves. And that's why the conference outcome is now the base for real treaty change. Let's be ready for these changes.

SOUNDBITE (English), Iratxe GARC&#205;A P&#201;REZ, COFOE, The result is a conclusion with a strong political message. We want more Europe. We need more Europe. We need to include other priorities in the European Union, speaking about the social dimension, equality between men and women, to support the other challenges that we have in this moment with the Ukrainian war and thinking I, I believe that we can be satisfied with the result. But the question is now what we will do with this result and this will be the next step.

SOUNDBITE (Spanish), Iratxe GARC&#205;A P&#201;REZ, COFOE, The European Parliament has debated with citizens and we have been able to share with different points of view the needs that we share, which we share, the institutions.

SOUNDBITE (Spanish), Iratxe GARC&#205;A P&#201;REZ, COFOE, That more social Europe, that more inclusive Europe, that Europe has to address challenges such as immigration, such as security and defence, the social dimension, how to support, to combat climate change. All those debates that we have on a day-to-day basis in Parliament. We have been able to carry them out with the citizens and that was the great exercise of this conference. Parliament will now receive the conclusions and will work to share what the next steps are.

SOUNDBITE (English), Daniel FREUND, COFOE, What the citizens have proposed are really great reforms, a long list of things that Europe urgently needs, very much in line with what the Parliament suggested as well. So very, very happy with the result.

SOUNDBITE (English), Daniel FREUND, COFOE, I think there is many recommendations that are very important for the Parliament, a right of initiative, budgetary power for the parliament and getting rid of the veto

SOUNDBITE (English), Daniel FREUND, COFOE, While it's so important now that these proposals don't just go to the House of European history, but that they become a reality. So the European Parliament, for the most ambitious proposals, needs to start the procedure to change the EU treaties. So we need a new constitutional convention to make the big changes that the citizens want to see.

SOUNDBITE (English), Helmut SCHOLZ, COFOE, The citizens has delivered and they delivered a strong message. There must be an improvement of European policy. There must be much more taking into concrete relationship with what they expect in their daily life. And I would say these recommendations as the conclusions and the paper, we have just worked hardly over more than one year. I am satisfied because that expected outcome is delivering and I have to admire the work of these citizens in their pensions. But of course also the representative from the European Parliament, from the national parliaments, some the social partners, from the Committee of Regions, from the Council, from the Commission and all together have understood we have to work, we have to make European policy more responsible, more responsive, more direct.

SOUNDBITE (English), Helmut SCHOLZ, COFOE, So the Parliament has a lot of to add. The first step into this direction is to call for a convention, to call for a process where we are now trends pondering the conclusions of this conference in an immediate follow up protest. And I am convinced that already next week and the week after the 9th of May, that Parliament will start to work in this direction.