Notre Europe's viewpoint
| 09/10/2007
The technical work of the Intergovernmental Conference being over, there is a good chance that Heads of State or Government will agree on a new Reform Treaty in Lisbon on 18-19 October. This could mean that the European Union is on the verge of a new phase, when it can stop haggling over institutional arrangements and concentrate on its policies. For Notre Europe, it is indeed crucial to focus again on substantive issues - and in particular, with the potential of a new institutional arrangement for EU external affairs, on the issue of Europe's standing in the world. But it is as important to do so while keeping citizens in the loop. With this in mind, Notre Europe's contribution - small relative to the EU, but huge in terms of the innovative contribution it makes to participatory democracy in Europe - is to hold Tomorrow's Europe this week, the first-ever Deliberative Poll.
On 12-14 October 2007, for the first time ever, Tomorrow's Europe will bring together a representative microcosm of some 400 citizens from all 27 European Union member states for a weekend of deliberation within the European Parliament and EESC buildings in Brussels. They will discuss the future of the EU - the overall theme is "Europe in the World" - and look in particular at economic issues raised by globalisation, and foreign policy matters. It will take place just four days before EU Heads of State and government meet in Lisbon, on 18-19 October, a fitting time to see what Europeans would think if they had the opportunity to meet and share opinions across borders.
Deliberative Polling is a process of impartial information, deliberation and opinion gauging (information attached). The results are bound to surprise and provide added value: how will the views of the Dutch tulip farmer, the proverbial Polish plumber, the London taxi driver and other ordinary citizens evolve? Will EU decision makers listen? We hope that this ambitious initiative will reveal people's considered opinions and demonstrate that it is possible to create impartial and rigorous deliberation infrastructures at the trans-national level.
Also, on the occasion of the publication of the study "An Open Europe in a Multipolar World: Lessons from the Portuguese Experience" by àlvaro de Vasconcelos, Notre Europe is organising a breakfast presentation on Friday 12 October 2007. This will be another opportunity to take stock of where the EU stands and where it might go from here, at this key juncture in its history.
