Dialogue ‘crucial’ to rebuilding trust in EU

Continued dialogue with member states is fundamental to achieve a sense of common ownership and rebuild trust in the European project, Meglena Kuneva, EU commissioner for consumer protection, will say today at Fondation EURACTIV’s annual conference in Parliament.

As European leaders prepare to adopt a new treaty in December to modernise the EU’s institutions, Kuneva is to send a reminder that this is not the end of the road.

“Effective institutions are essential for the functioning of the EU, but they themselves cannot reinvigorate Europe on their own,” Kuneva will tell MEPs, journalists and civil society groups attending Fondation EURACTIV’s annual conference on 8 November. 

In a keynote speech, she will stress that “common ownership is essential” and that “a continued dialogue with the capitals is a crucial element for achieving this.”

The EU has often been criticised for being cut off from citizens’ preoccupations, a criticism that Margot Wallström, Commission Vice-President for institutional relations and communications strategy, has sought to address in a recent plan to “Communicate Europe in partnership”.

The new plan, unveiled in October, seeks to foster greater cooperation between Brussels-based EU institutions and national governments in communicating EU policies to citizens. The objective is to win back popular support for the European project and reverse the decline in voter turnout at the next European elections in 2009.

“We are not living in a bubble,” Kuneva will tell the conference, entitled “EU Actors: How to interact with the European capitals?” “We will always need the check on the ground to be sure that we are on the right track.”

Kuneva, a former Minister for European Affairs in Bulgaria, was appointed commissioner when her country joined the EU in 2007. Now, as EU commissioner for consumer protection, she believes she can play a role in bridging the gap with citizens in her own country.

“You may be a businessman, a civil servant, an employee, a worker or a student but the common for all is that you are all consumers.”

“The interaction with European capitals is a core activity for this College of Commissioners. As such we are well placed to explain EU policies to our national societies and seek support and comprehension by all EU actors.”

Read more with Euractiv

Public support for EU treaty low in Ireland

Only 25% of Irish citizens would currently vote in favour of the Lisbon Treaty about to be signed by EU leaders on 13 December, according to a recent poll, which also showed many voters still need to make up their minds ahead of a referendum on the new EU treaty.