Elections of the European Parliament

By Miriam Eisermann on 26 May 2009

Energie-Cités members have their role to play to contribute to the success of the 2009 elections of the European Parliament! They will take place from June 4th to 7th, in each of the 27 Member States of the EU.

The European Parliament is the only European institution that is truly attentive to our concerns (with the exception of the Committee of the Regions whose role is quite limited).

This was just recently the case during the debates on the European Economic Recovery Plan. The States, as well as the European Commission, put the industrial interests of national companies first and dismissed all proposals to support the Covenant signatories with financial and human resources. By contrast, the same proposals have been given a favourable opinion by all parties in the European Parliament: the Parliament’s Ad hoc Commission passed all the amendments proposed by Energie-Cités and other networks in their unabridged version.

The Energie-Cités resolution on the EU elections

That is why, on 23 of April, the Energie-Cités Board of Directors has adopted the following resolution:

“The elections to the European Parliament will be held in a few weeks’ time. The Parliament has already previously demonstrated that it is able to relay the concerns of European citizens and decentralised players in a sustainable development perspective.

The EU Parliament has become a major stakeholder in energy efficiency and renewable energy policies as well as in terms of local and regional development concerns.

At a time when the crisis is producing wide-ranging effects, Europe will not only need medium and long term strategies, it will also have to take better account of and promote local initiatives. There is no sustainable energy policy without cities!

This is why Energie-Cités, regardless of any partisan spirit, urges its members to take all initiatives aiming at:

• Encouraging citizens’ participation in European elections,
• Informing candidates on subjects relating to local sustainable energy policies,
• Joining other movements of opinion with the same objectives.”

In the case of low turnouts, the prevailing Eurosceptic atmosphere is likely to seriously undermine the legitimacy of newly elected MEPs. In view of the increasing number of areas where a co-decision by the Parliament and the Council is required, we definitely need a strong Parliament acting as the voice of European citizens.

Amongst the favourites on the Energie-Cités Youtube channel, you can find two videos illustrating that voting is for everyone. So if you’re running a polling station, just stay cool and make it happen.

For further information: www.europarl.europa.eu/elections2009/default.htm?language=EN

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