P9_TA(2023)0434 – Deliberations of the Committee on Petitions in 2022 – European Parliament resolution of 23 November 2023 on the outcome of the Committee on Petitions’ deliberations during 2022 (2023/2047(INI))
Date: 2023-11-23
Institutions: Committee on Petitions, European Parliament
Subjects: EP Committee, EU national, activity report, administrative transparency, citizens' Europe, fundamental rights, operation of the Institutions, participatory democracy, petition








C_202404220EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2024/4220


24.7.2024






P9_TA(2023)0434

Deliberations of the Committee on Petitions in 2022


European Parliament resolution of 23 November 2023 on the outcome of the Committee on Petitions’ deliberations during 2022 (2023/2047(INI))

(C/2024/4220)



The European Parliament,







—


having regard to its previous resolutions on the outcome of the Committee on Petitions' deliberations,










—


having regard to Articles 10 and 11 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU),










—


having regard to Articles 20, 24 and 227 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which reflect the importance the Treaty attaches to the right of EU citizens and residents to bring their concerns to the attention of Parliament,










—


having regard to Article 228 TFEU on the role and functions of the European Ombudsman,










—


having regard to Article 44 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union concerning the right to petition the European Parliament,










—


having regard to the provisions of the TFEU relating to the infringement procedure and, in particular, to Articles 258 and 260 thereof,










—


having regard to Rules 54 and 227(7) of its Rules of Procedure,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Petitions (A9-0333/2023),










A.


whereas the purpose of the annual report on the outcome of the Committee on Petitions’ deliberations is to present an analysis of the petitions received in 2022 and of relations with other institutions, and to present an accurate picture of the objectives achieved in 2022;










B.


whereas in 2022, Parliament received 1 217 petitions, which represents a decrease of 12,6 % compared to the 1 392 petitions submitted in 2021 and a decrease of 22,6 % compared to the 1 573 petitions submitted in 2020;










C.


whereas in 2022, the number of users supporting one or more petitions on Parliament’s Petitions Web Portal was 22 441, which represents a considerable decrease compared to the 209 272 users recorded in 2021 (which was itself a high increase compared to the 48 882 supporters recorded in 2020); whereas the number of clicks in support of petitions also decreased in 2022, reaching a total of 27 927 (in comparison with 217 876 in 2021 and 55 129 in 2020);










D.


whereas, however, the overall number of petitions remains modest in relation to the total population of the EU, revealing that efforts still need to be stepped up to increase citizens’ awareness about their right to petition and its possible usefulness as a means of drawing the attention of the institutions and the Member States to matters that affect and concern citizens directly; whereas, in exercising the right to petition, citizens expect that the EU institutions will provide added value in finding a solution to their problems; whereas it is very important to reply to petitioners in a timely manner and with reasoned answers in order to build citizens’ trust in the Union;










E.


whereas the criteria for the admissibility of petitions are laid down in Article 227 TFEU and Rule 226 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, which require that petitions must be submitted by an EU citizen or by a natural or legal person who is resident or has a registered office in a Member State and is directly affected by matters falling within the EU’s fields of activity;










F.


whereas, of the 1 217 petitions submitted in 2022, 357 were declared inadmissible and 5 were withdrawn; whereas the high percentage (29,46 %) of inadmissible petitions in 2022 confirms that there is still a widespread lack of clarity about the scope of the Union’s areas of responsibility; whereas in order to reduce the number of inadmissible petitions, efforts still need to be made to clarify further the scope of the EU’s fields of activity; whereas to remedy this situation, communication with citizens needs to be encouraged and improved;










G.


whereas each petition is considered and examined carefully, efficiently and transparently;










H.


whereas petitioners tend to be citizens engaged in safeguarding fundamental rights and in the improvement and future well-being of our societies; whereas the experience of these citizens in regard to the processing of their petitions is very influential in determining their perception of the EU institutions, knowledge about the actions taken at EU level and respect for the right to petition as enshrined in EU law;










I.


whereas the right to petition the European Parliament is one of the fundamental rights of EU citizens; whereas the right to petition provides EU citizens and residents with an open, democratic and transparent mechanism to address their elected representatives directly and is therefore essential to enable citizens to participate actively and effectively in the life of the Union; whereas the processing of petitions is very influential in determining the petitioners’ perception of the EU institutions and the trust they put in the Union and its policies; whereas, therefore, it is essential to maintain high standards when implementing this right and processing petitions; whereas, through petitions, EU citizens can complain about failures to implement EU law and help detect breaches of EU law;










J.


whereas the right to petition offers Parliament the opportunity to address and respond to complaints and concerns relating to issues in the EU’s fields of activity; whereas the right to petition enables Parliament and the other EU institutions, in particular the Commission as guardian of the Treaties, to enhance their responsiveness to alleged non-compliance with EU legislation in the Member States; whereas petitions are therefore a useful source of information on instances of misapplication or breaches of EU law, as well as on shortcomings and loopholes in existing EU law, and, thus, enable Parliament and the other EU institutions to assess the transposition and application of EU law and its impact on the rights of EU citizens and residents;










K.


whereas an inter-service working group on sign language was established in Parliament in order to implement measures to fulfil the request made in petition 1056/2016 to allow for the tabling of petitions in national sign languages used in the European Union;










L.


whereas the European Parliament is the only EU institution directly elected by EU citizens; whereas Parliament has long been at the forefront of the development of the petitions process internationally and has the most open and transparent petitions process in Europe, allowing petitioners to participate fully in its activities;










M.


whereas the Committee on Petitions carefully examines and deals with each petition submitted to Parliament; whereas each petitioner receives a reply informing them about the decision on admissibility and follow-up actions taken by the committee within a reasonable period of time, in their own language or in the language used in the petition; whereas each petitioner is entitled to request that their petition be reopened on the basis of any relevant new development; whereas the Commission has reiterated its refusal to take action on issues raised in individual petitions when they do not reflect structural problems and in these cases refer to the national courts to apply Union law;










N.


whereas according to Article 17 TEU, the Commission must ensure the correct application of the Treaties and of measures adopted pursuant to them; whereas the Commission's strategic approach in addressing issues raised in petitions must be fully consistent with the Treaties in order to guarantee their effective follow-up;










O.


whereas the Committee on Petitions is the only body that is in direct contact with EU citizens and is thus able to inform them about action taken at European, national or local level;










P.


whereas the activities of the Committee on Petitions are based on the input provided by petitioners; whereas the information submitted by petitioners in their petitions and at committee meetings, along with the Commission’s assessment and the replies of the Member States and other bodies, are crucial for the work of the committee; whereas admissible petitions also provide valuable contributions to the work of the other parliamentary committees, given that they are forwarded by the Committee on Petitions to other committees for an opinion or for information; whereas, therefore, petitions may play a role in the legislative process by providing other parliamentary committees with valuable input for their legislative work in their respective fields of competence;










Q.


whereas the Committee on Petitions attaches paramount importance to the examination and public discussion of petitions at its meetings; whereas petitioners have the right to present their petitions and frequently take the floor in the discussion, thereby actively contributing to the work of the committee; whereas in 2022, the Committee on Petitions held 12 committee meetings (excluding its constitutive meeting), at which 143 petitions were discussed with 133 petitioners present and most of them actively participating by taking the floor;










R.


whereas the number of petitions received in 2022 asking for full compliance with EU environmental law and for associated effective and rapid measures, in line with the precautionary principle, in order to protect ecosystems and habitats of Union concern amounted to a total of 258 (21,2 %), thus representing the main theme of concern for petitioners; whereas the other main subjects of concern raised in petitions related to fundamental rights (17,4 %), justice (15,6 %) and external relations (10,4 %);










S.


whereas when adopting its meeting agenda, the Committee on Petitions pays attention to all admissible petitions independently of the topic of the petition or its origin, in particular to topics with significant relevance for discussion at EU level; whereas there is a need in all Member States to raise awareness on the right to petition the European Parliament, in particular on thematic areas that generate fewer petitions, in order to guarantee a better geographical coverage of the petitions received;










T.


whereas 79 % of the petitions received in 2022 were submitted via Parliament’s Petitions Web Portal, which is a slight increase compared to 2021 (78,6 %), thus confirming again that it is by far the most used channel for citizens to submit petitions to Parliament;










U.


whereas, in 2022, the Petitions Web Portal was further improved to make it more user-friendly, more secure and more accessible to petitioners; whereas all petitions were prepared and published in a timely manner, within a few days of their adoption, and all internal and external requests for support regarding the use and content of the Petitions Web Portal were replied to successfully, in a timely manner and in all languages; whereas version 2.0 of the Petitions Web Portal was further deployed and a chatbot was set up for it;










V.


whereas, in 2022, the Committee on Petitions held seven fact-finding visits; whereas this represents a large increase compared to the single fact-finding visit organised in 2021; whereas this can be explained by the need in 2021 to minimise health risks for Parliament’s Members and staff in the context of the spread of COVID-19 and therefore by the consecutive postponement of two fact-finding visits to 2022;










W.


whereas under Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, the Committee on Petitions is responsible for relations with the European Ombudsman, who investigates complaints about maladministration within the institutions and bodies of the EU; whereas the current European Ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, presented her annual report for 2021 to the Committee on Petitions at its meeting of 8 September 2022;










X.


whereas the Committee on Petitions is a member of the European Network of Ombudsmen, which also includes the European Ombudsman, national and regional ombudsmen and similar bodies in the Member States, the candidate countries and other European Economic Area countries, and which aims to promote the exchange of information about EU law and policy, and to share best practices;










Y.


whereas further improving citizen’s participation is a key element for bringing the EU closer to its citizens; whereas on 26-27 January 2022, the Committee on Petitions adopted the report entitled ‘Engaging with citizens: the right to petition, the right to refer to the European Ombudsman and the European Citizens’ Initiative’ (1), concluding that the Conference on the Future of Europe should result in the improvement of the instruments of participatory democracy; whereas Parliament adopted a resolution on the basis of the Committee on Petitions’ report on 9 March 2022; whereas the Committee on Petitions considers the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) an important instrument of participatory democracy, which enables citizens to become actively involved in shaping the Union’s policies and legislation;













1.


Emphasises the fundamental role of the Committee on Petitions in protecting and promoting the rights of EU citizens and residents by ensuring that petitioners’ concerns and complaints are examined in a timely, effective, appropriate and non-discriminatory manner, and that the petitioners are informed about the actions taken and progress made on their petitions, and that they are resolved through an open, democratic and transparent petition process;












2.


Reiterates the importance of a continuous public debate on the Union’s fields of activity in order to ensure that citizens are correctly informed about the scope of the Union’s competences and the different levels of decision-making; reiterates its call, in this regard, for broader awareness raising campaigns in all the official languages of the EU, through the active involvement of communications services, to help increase citizens’ awareness of their right to submit a petition to the European Parliament, as well as of the scope of the Union’s responsibilities and the competences of the Committee on Petitions, with a view to reducing the number of inadmissible petitions and better responding to citizens’ concerns;












3.


Reiterates that it is important that the Commission revises its strategic approach on the handling of petitions in order to ensure an adequate follow-up of all petitions denouncing violations of EU law, including those raised in individual petitions; calls on the Commission to provide legal clarification on the key concepts that are laid down in its strategic approach, such as an ‘issue of wider principle’ and ‘systemic failure to enforce EU law’, which are regularly used in its follow-up on petitions; encourages the Commission to carry out thorough investigations and a more timely and proactive dialogue with national authorities, with a view to rapidly ending the alleged violations of EU law denounced by petitioners, with a particular focus on petitions denouncing breaches of rights for a large number of citizens and residents in the EU or further violations of EU law linked to systemic shortcomings;












4.


Points out that petitions constitute a unique opportunity for Parliament and the other EU institutions to directly connect with EU citizens and maintain a regular dialogue with them, particularly in cases where they are affected by the misapplication or breach of EU law; stresses the need for enhanced cooperation between the EU institutions and national, regional and local authorities on inquiries regarding the implementation of and compliance with EU law; believes that such cooperation is crucial to address and resolve citizens’ concerns over the application of EU law and that it contributes to strengthening the democratic legitimacy and accountability of the Union, as well as the participation of citizens and residents in democratic processes; calls, therefore, for the participation of Member States’ representatives in committee meetings and for timely and detailed responses to requests for clarification or information sent by the Committee on Petitions to national authorities;












5.


Recalls the European dimension of the Committee on Petitions, which can be addressed by citizens and residents from all 27 Member States on issues that fall within the scope of the EU Treaties and EU law; believes that the committee has a special responsibility to uphold this European dimension and to demonstrate the added value of European unity and integration; is of the opinion that the treatment of petitions during committee meetings, as well as the organisation of fact-finding visits based on petitions, should be geographically balanced; believes, in this respect, that the European Parliament should increase its efforts to promote the role and work of its Committee on Petitions and raise awareness among all EU citizens and residents of the right to address a petition to the European Parliament; believes that the political groups represented in the Committee on Petitions should, whenever possible, consider consensus and balance with regard to selecting and treating petitions;












6.


Recalls that petitions contribute considerably to the Commission’s role as guardian of the Treaties by providing citizens with an additional tool to notify alleged breaches of EU law; stresses that cooperation between the Committee on Petitions and the Commission through timely and detailed answers from the Commission that are based on thorough examinations of the issues raised in petitions, are essential to ensure the successful treatment of petitions;












7.


Notes that answers provided by the Commission are not always formulated in a way that petitioners can understand; calls therefore on the Commission to raise awareness among its staff about the need to use plain, simple, empathetic and appropriate language in order to convey clearly understandable responses to the petitioners; encourages the Commission to delegate the role of presenting the Commission’s positions in the meetings of the Committee on Petitions to more senior and high-ranking staff; calls on the Commission to be more involved in the work of the Committee on Petitions and, in particular, to respond in a timely manner to the problems raised by petitioners;












8.


Notes the lack of systematic follow-up in the Commission’s communication with the Committee on Petitions regarding infringement procedures that are related to issues raised in petitions and that are often lengthy and opaque; notes that a large number of ongoing infringement procedures, including those related to issues raised in many petitions, have been delayed in the pre-contentious phase for many years, with no referral to the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) for the concerned Member States; welcomes, as a best practice and benchmark to improve the overall strategy on the enforcement of EU law, the Commission’s approach of setting a target of 12 months to refer infringement cases to the CJEU, which is already the practice for persistent failure by a Member State to transpose a legislative directive; considers that stronger cooperation between the Commission and Parliament would better address Member States’ violations of EU law in pre-infringement cases; believes that it is essential for national authorities to be aware of the consequences when there is no redress to the breach of Union law, as demonstrated by the petitions, including cases of incomplete or partial implementation of the CJEU's judgments; is of the opinion that effective redress to the victims of the breaches of EU legislation increases citizens’ trust in the Union and its policies; reiterates its call on the Commission to regularly update the Committee on Petitions on developments in infringement proceedings and to ensure that the Committee on Petitions gets access to the relevant Commission documents on infringement procedures and legislative initiatives that were launched based on the petitions received, and on EU Pilot procedures; is of the opinion that the highest level of transparency and regular feedback on the handling of ongoing infringement procedures by the Commission would be beneficial for the committee’s follow-up on open petitions;












9.


Calls on the Commission to assess whether national authorities are taking the necessary measures to respond to citizens’ concerns, as expressed in their petitions where cases of failure to comply with EU law occur, and to launch infringement procedures where necessary; believes that early action by the Commission in cases of breaches of EU law is crucial to prevent such breaches from becoming systemic in nature;












10.


Recalls that the e-Petition database is an essential internal tool that allows the members of the Committee on Petitions to access all necessary information in order to follow up on the state of play of each petition and to be able to make informed decisions on the treatment of the petitions; notes that the e-Petition database also plays an important role in communication with petitioners and calls for Parliament to allocate resources in order to further develop the document flow aspects of the tool to make communication with petitioners easier and faster;












11.


Welcomes the Commission’s commitment to create an interinstitutional IT tool with Parliament, and urges its swift implementation, as a means of sharing information and documents on all follow-up actions taken on petitions, such as infringement procedures, legislative proposals or replies by national authorities, thus enhancing the transparency and efficiency of the petitions’ treatment, which, in a wider context, would contribute to increasing citizens’ trust in the EU institutions and European project; encourages the Commission to use other tools as well in order to provide comprehensive information to the Committee on Petitions, including its annual report on monitoring the application of EU law, which should provide an exhaustive analysis of the link between petitions, infringement procedures and legislative and non-legislative measures taken following petitions received, thus addressing the lack of transposition and incorrect application of EU law by Member States; underlines the need to strengthen the relevance of the Committee on Petitions’ work by strengthening the use of petitions and the overall follow-up actions on petitions received to better address potential shortcomings in the application and implementation of EU law, including through the petitions network of the European Parliament;












12.


Recalls that cooperation with other committees in Parliament is essential for the comprehensive treatment of petitions; notes that in 2022, 56 petitions were sent to other committees for opinion and 734 for information; regrets that, of the 56 opinions requested, only 25 opinions were received; recalls that petitioners are informed of decisions to request opinions from other committees for the treatment of their petitions; underlines that the parliamentary committees should step up their efforts to actively contribute to the examination of petitions – by providing their expertise – and thus enable Parliament to respond more swiftly and comprehensively to citizens’ concerns;












13.


Believes that the petitions network is a useful tool for facilitating the follow-up of petitions in parliamentary and legislative work; trusts that regular meetings of the petitions network are crucial in order to ensure more visibility for the Committee on Petition’s activities and better understanding of its work and mission and to strengthen cooperation with the other parliamentary committees; believes that the exchange of information about specific petitions relevant to ongoing legislative work could be improved;












14.


Underlines that the Committee on Petitions expressed its position on important issues raised in petitions by adopting its report on the outcome of the Committee on Petitions’ deliberations during 2021 (2), its report entitled ‘Engaging with citizens: the right to petition, the right to refer to the European Ombudsman and the European Citizens’ Initiative’, its report entitled ‘EU Citizenship Report 2020: empowering citizens and protecting their rights’ (3), its opinion entitled ‘Better regulation: Joining forces to make better laws’ (4) and its opinion of 15 March 2022 on the Commission’s 2021 Rule of Law Report (5);












15.


Stresses the huge increase in the number of petitions submitted on external relations issues compared to previous years; notes that this could be explained by the geopolitical context in 2022 and in particular the Russian aggression against Ukraine; notes that the Committee on Petitions took account of citizen’s concerns about security, humanitarian aid, sanctions, security of food supply, military and financial support to Ukraine, conflict resolution, visa policy, energy supply and the integration of Ukraine in the EU, among other issues, putting a number of petitions dealing in particular with questions related to the situation of refugees, children’s rights and food supply on the agenda; underlines that, in particular, the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs should take note of those petitions for their deliberations concerning Ukraine;












16.


Takes note that health, which was one of the main areas of concern for petitioners in 2021, mainly due to health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, appeared to become less important in 2022, owing to the fact that the number of petitions on COVID-19 that the Committee on Petitions examined and replied to in 2022 decreased compared to 2021;












17.


Draws attention to the significant number of petitions discussed in relation to various aspects of the protection of the rights of rainbow families in the EU, in particular the different stances regarding the free movement and mutual recognition rights of LGBTI+ families in the EU; recalls the public hearing on discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation that the Committee on Petitions organised on 1 December 2022, which assessed the legal difficulties that rainbow families encounter in their daily lives in Member States and discussed the situation relating to the mutual recognition of parenthood and marriages, as well as questions of child custody;












18.


Points out that petitions related to the rights of national minorities remained on the agenda of the Committee on Petitions, especially in the areas of discriminatory practices concerning their right to education in their mother tongue and the use of languages; points to the public hearing on cultural and linguistic diversity in the EU organised by the Committee on Petitions on 20 April 2022, which considered the various issues affecting the use of minority language and the possibilities of safeguarding and promoting cultural and linguistic diversity in the EU; considers necessary the EU's support for the teaching and use of regional and minority languages;












19.


Notes that environmental issues remained an area of serious concern for petitioners in 2022, with more than 20 % of petitions dedicated to environmental issues; notes that some of these petitions allege incorrect implementation by the Member States of EU legislation, with some Member States already facing infringement procedures for the breach of EU environmental laws; notes that numerous petitions raise complaints, among other things, about air quality, noise pollution, waste management and the deterioration of unique ecosystems and species, including Europe's last old-growth and primary forests and invaluable wetlands and peatlands; point out the breaches of EU legislation, including the Water Framework Directive (6), the Birds Directive (7) and the Habitats Directive (8); calls, in this context, on the Commission, in cases where the failure to implement EU environmental legislation has been detected, to launch without delay an infringement procedure that should be finalised within a reasonable time frame in order to prevent further deterioration of the environment; points to the work that the Committee on Petitions continued to carry out in 2022 on the impact of mining activities on the environment, putting a number of petitions received on this topic on the agenda; draws attention to some energy projects, especially relating to wind farms, and to the related public hearing of 15 June 2022 on the social and environmental impacts of renewable energy; highlights the high number of petitions on the management and protection of brown bear and wolf populations in the EU that need the full cooperation of all relevant authorities on the local, regional, national and EU levels to seek effective solutions to large carnivore conservation and management;












20.


Draws attention to the public hearing of the Committee on Petitions of 25 March 2022 on an EU Green Prosecutor, which assessed the shortcomings and challenges in the enforcement of EU environmental criminal law on the basis of petitions received, as well as new tools to tackle environmental crime, including the possible creation of a European Green Prosecutor’s Office, and paved the way for the adoption of an opinion by the committee; points out, in this regard, the opinion of the Committee on Petitions on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of the environment through criminal law and replacing Directive 2008/99/EC;












21.


Stresses the importance of delivering on EU citizens’ expectations regarding the protection of the environment, and in particular of taking action in the field of illegal logging; underlines, in this regard, the follow-up actions by Parliament on Petitions Nos 0289/2015, 0625/2018, 1248/2019, 0408/2020, 0722/2020 and 1056/2021, raising concerns over increasing illegal logging and specific cases of practices that are in breach of EU environmental legislation in a number of Member States; points, in this regard, to the European Parliament resolution of 23 June 2022 on illegal logging in the EU (9), adopted on the basis of a motion for a resolution by the Committee on Petitions, in addition to its question for oral answer and to a fact-finding visit concerning alleged breaches of EU environmental law;












22.


Stresses moreover the importance of reflecting on EU citizens’ demands with regard to the significant number of petitions received in 2022 calling for improvements to animal welfare standards, including the transport of live animal, restrictions to fast-growth broilers and the negative impact of cages and other welfare conditions for farmed animals; reminds the Commission, in this regard, to implement without delay its commitment in line with its communication in response to the ECI 'End the Cage Age' (10) and to propose a legislative proposal on animal welfare;












23.


Urges the Commission, again, together with the Member States, to ensure the correct implementation of EU legislation in the environmental field;












24.


Stresses the important contribution made by the Committee on Petitions to the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities, as revealed by its treatment of a number of petitions on this sensitive topic; points, in this regard, to the opinion of the Committee on Petitions entitled ‘Towards equal rights for people with disabilities’, adopted on 13 July 2022 (11); recalls the annual workshop of 30 November 2022 on the rights of persons with disabilities, which the Committee on Petitions held to focus on disability assessment, mutual recognition and the EU Disability Card, which shed light on the obstacles reported in petitions by persons with disabilities when they move across the EU; recalls that the Commission should address the cases where the national authorities refuse to recognise the right to social security benefits for disabled people, thus leaving them without the necessary means to cover their basic needs;












25.


Urges the relevant parliamentary services to continue their efforts and finalise the inter-service working group on sign language project in the shortest possible time frame in order to meet the requests of petition 1056/2016 to allow for the tabling of petitions in international and national sign languages used in the EU and thereby make the fundamental right to petition more accessible for sign language users;












26.


Highlights the need to punctually provide international sign language interpretation services and easy-to-read language translations for committee meetings, plenary meetings and other major Parliament meetings and events in order to make them accessible for persons with disabilities;












27.


Underlines the specific protection role played by the Committee on Petitions within the EU in the framework of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; points to the committee’s important ongoing work in connection with petitions concerning issues related to disabilities; stresses the increase in the number of petitions on disability in 2022 in comparison with previous years, especially 2021, from which the number more than doubled; notes that discrimination and access to education and employment remain among the main challenges faced by persons with disabilities; points out that the Committee on Petitions gave special attention to the questions of sheltered workshops, social inclusion of people with disabilities and the improvement of voting conditions, in particular for persons with disabilities;












28.


Recalls the fact that relations with the European Ombudsman are one of the responsibilities conferred by Parliament’s Rules of Procedure on the Committee on Petitions; welcomes Parliament’s constructive cooperation with the European Ombudsman with whom the Committee on Petitions shares the objective of ensuring the transparency, professionalism and integrity of the EU institutions vis-à-vis EU citizens, with regard to the adoption and implementation of EU laws in areas of vital importance for people’s lives, such as fundamental rights, environmental protection, consumer protection and workers’ rights;












29.


Acknowledges the European Ombudsman’s regular contributions to the work of the Committee on Petitions throughout the year; firmly believes that the Union’s institutions, bodies and agencies must ensure adequate, consistent and effective follow-up to all recommendations from the Ombudsman;












30.


Stresses that the ECI is an important instrument for active citizenship and public participation; underlines the need to improve the Commission's commitments in its responses to valid ECIs in order to foster citizens' trust in the ECI as the most significant instrument for participatory democracy; welcomes the discussion in several meetings of some unsuccessful ECIs as petitions, which gave citizens the opportunity to present their ideas and hold a constructive debate, as well as facilitating the participation of EU citizens in the democratic process of the Union; takes note of the significant number of new ECIs registered by the Commission in 2022, which shows that citizens are seizing the opportunity to use participatory instruments to have a say in policy and lawmaking processes; calls on the Commission to give due consideration to the parliamentary resolutions adopted on ECIs and to better engage with citizens by ensuring adequate follow-up to successful ECIs;












31.


Recalls that the petitioners are able to participate not only in the deliberations on petitions that they have submitted, but also in the fact-finding visits that are based on those petitions; believes, in this regard, that providing petitioners with the opportunity to have their travel expenses reimbursed when they take part in a fact-finding visit of the Committee on Petitions that concerns their petition would facilitate their participation; recalls that fact-finding visits represent an important part of the annual activities of the Committee on Petitions and that, in 2022, since the Committee on Petitions received many emotional petitions on children's rights and welfare, it carried out two fact-finding visits on this issue, despite the fact that most aspects regarding children’s rights fall within national competences;












32.


Underlines that the Petitions Web Portal is an essential tool for ensuring a smooth, efficient and transparent petitions process; welcomes, in this regard, the improvements to data protection and security features which have made the portal more user-friendly and secure for citizens; stresses that efforts must be continued to make the portal more accessible, including to persons with disabilities; notes that the Petitions Web Portal has been one of the European Parliament’s most visited websites, thus serving as a first point of contact for many EU citizens with the European Parliament;












33.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution and the report of the Committee on Petitions to the Council, the Commission, the European Ombudsman, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, and the Member States’ committees on petitions and national ombudsmen or similar competent bodies.






(1)  Adopted by Parliament on 9 March 2022 as a resolution (OJ C 347, 9.9.2022, p. 110).

(2)  Adopted by Parliament as a resolution on 15 December 2022 (OJ C 177, 17.5.2023, p. 129).

(3)  Adopted by Parliament as a resolution on 10 March 2022 (OJ C 347, 9.9.2022, p. 202).

(4)  Opinion adopted as part of procedure 2021/2166(INI), concluding with the adoption of the European Parliament resolution of 7 July 2022 on Better regulation: Joining forces to make better laws (OJ C 47, 7.2.2023, p. 250).

(5)  Opinion adopted as part of procedure 2021/2180(INI), concluding with the adoption of the European Parliament resolution of 19 May 2022 on the Commission’s 2021 Rule of Law Report (OJ C 479, 16.12.2022, p. 18).

(6)  Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy (OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1).

(7)  Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds (OJ L 20, 26.1.2010, p. 7).

(8)  Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7).

(9)  
            OJ C 32, 27.1.2023, p. 20.

(10)  
            OJ C 274, 9.7.2021, p. 1.

(11)  Opinion adopted as part of procedure 2022/2026(INI), concluding with the adoption of the European Parliament resolution of 13 December 2022 towards equal rights for persons with disabilities (OJ C 177, 17.5.2023, p. 13).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/4220/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)