The Deputy Chairwoman of the Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs, Ms Marina Nikolaou, participated yesterday, via internet, in an Inter-Parliamentary Meeting of the Constitutional Affairs Committee of the European Parliament (EP), on the proposed revision of the European electoral law, with the aim of harmonising the legislative framework for the election of MEPs in all Member States of the European Union (EU) and the establishment of transnational lists.
In her intervention, Ms Nicolaou stressed the need to ensure the integrity of elections, as a pillar of democracy, in order to ensure adequate and fair representation of citizens in the EU institutions. The priority of any revision, the Cypriot MP stressed, should be to strengthen the democratic legitimacy of the EP and to bridge the gap between citizens and their representatives at the European level. The equality of Member States, Ms Nicolaou said, is a fundamental principle of the EU and, therefore, the revision cannot be legitimately carried out with a universal application of the same standards for elections in all Member States and their constitutional, legal, political and administrative specificities should be taken into account. Regarding the proposed introduction of transnational lists, which would include candidates from all over the territory of the Union, Ms Nicolaou stressed that this reform should not work to the detriment of the representation of the smaller EU Member States. Finally, she stressed the need to inform the EP and the institutions of the Member States about the position of the Council of the EU on the proposed revision.
(Text as sent by the House of Representatives)
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