Campaigners say it gives citizens access to Brussels, but not leverage over it
Direct democracy is not just for Switzerland.
The EU has its own version, the European Citizens’ Initiative, or ECI. It gives people a way into Brussels without needing a lobby badge, a permanent representation, or a high tolerance for institutional coffee.
When it was launched in 2012, the promise sounded almost radical by EU standards. Gather one million valid signatures from at least seven EU countries on an issue within EU powers, and the European Commission must listen and formally respond.
It was the first, and still only, transnational tool of direct democracy. But 131 registered initiatives later, and with just 13 replies, campaigners are disappointed. Some are outright sceptical. Some have discovered that public pressure in Brussels is not enough to succeed.
