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The need for effective communication has a legal basis in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (the Charter), which guarantees the right to be informed about EU issues for all citizens. The EU institutions have developed several tools and services to stay in contact with and inform the public. Since its formal launch in 2012, the European Citizens’ Initiative has allowed citizens to become more directly involved in new legislation and EU issues.

The European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) is an important instrument of participatory democracy in the EU, allowing one million citizens residing in one quarter of the Member States to invite the Commission to submit a proposal for a legal act to implement the EU Treaties. Since the application of a 2011 Regulation establishing detailed procedures for the ECI, thirteen initiatives have been successfully submitted to the Commission. Since January 2020, new rules have applied to make the ECI more accessible ...

This briefing considers the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2025 concluding observations to the European Union. The briefing assesses their relevance to the issues raised in petitions submitted to the European Parliament.

Since the entry into force of the Treaty of Maastricht, every EU citizen and all natural or legal persons residing in the Member States have had the right to submit a petition to the European Parliament, in the form of a complaint or a request on an issue that falls within the European Union’s fields of activity. Petitions are examined by Parliament’s Committee on Petitions, which takes a decision on their admissibility and is responsible for dealing with them.

This briefing provides background information for the PETI Committee Delegation to the Canary Islands, specifically to Tenerife and Gran Canaria from 15 to 17 September 2025. The mission will allow Members to assess the challenges faced on the ground in the Canary Islands as a result of irregular arrivals of migrants. It will further allow Members to examine the role of smuggling networks, the state of reception facilities and their possible limitations, explore solutions to support affected regions ...

Assessment of the legal and economic consequences of the Catalan legislation as regards free movements of goods and services

Assessment of the legal consequences of the Catalan legislation as regards consumer rights

Assessment of the consequences of Catalan legislation in light of articles 21 and 22 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

Petition No. 1407/2023, submitted by David Gutierrez Prieto on behalf of the Confederacion Espanola de Policia (CEP), led the PETI Committee to organise a fact-finding visit to Spain, in the towns of Algeciras and Barbate. The petition raises concerns about the fundamental and labour rights of police officers in Spain and in the EU and calls for police work to be recognised as a risk profession across Member States.