By Alexandra Attalides
The European Parliament (EP) is the voice of citizens in the European Union. This Institution simplifies for the needs and desires of European citizens the complexity and the broad nature of the EU’s actions. However, this is not perceived by a number of citizens nor is it assessed as such to the extent that it should be. Still, a simple revision of the EP's actions could make anyone realize that citizens and their concerns remain high on the list of priorities. A good example is the recent plenary resolution on the EU 2020 budget, in which the Members of the Parliament prioritized the need of investment towards measures for the protection of the climate and the promotion of youth programs. Both issues are high on the agenda of the majority of the European citizens in Cyprus and the rest of the member states.
In this context, MEPs added more than €2 billion for climate protection, emphasizing that the EU 2020 budget is the “last opportunity for the EU to try and implement its political obligations ... such as achieving its goals for the climate”. They also increased funding for the Youth Employment Initiative, YEI, and they reinforced the popular and highly successful Erasmus+ and DiscoverEU programs. The Members approved additional financing for the SMEs and the digitalization, immigration and foreign policy sectors.
“The vote on the 2020 Budget shows Parliament’s united front and a common understanding among the political groups: ambitious climate targets and environmental protection can go hand in hand with programmes that create new jobs, support European research and development facilities”, the Raporteur of the report MEP Monika Hohlmeier (EPP, Germany) underlined after the vote, highlighting in other words, the "popular" nature of the plenary. Of course, the matter is not concluded yet, since the process of "conciliation" with the Council will now begin, aiming to find a timely agreement on the budget. Again, the Parliament, the voice of the citizens, has a substantial role to play, since the budget will have to be approved by the plenary.
