Policy Focus

EU elections could be pan-European by 2014

Citizens in one member state could be allowed to vote for a candidate in another country in European elections under a new plan put forward by UK deputy Andrew Duff.

He also proposes the creation of “semi-open” lists that would give parliament the power to verify the credentials of candidates.

Duff, parliament’s rapporteur on electoral reform, outlined his ideas at a news conference on Monday.

He said, “These are radical measures but they are badly needed to address the profound democratic deficit facing the EU.”

The transnational list would mean a voter in, say Manchester, would be able to vote for a candidate in Bologna and vice versa. The EU-wide list would run alongside existing national registers, from which 750 deputies would be elected.

The creation of semi-open lists would put an end to the current practice of closed lists, where some member states, including the UK, only allow electors to vote for a political party and not individual candidates.

“This is ok for people at the top of voting lists but scarcely appeals to voters who would, I believe, prefer to be have the chance to vote for a particular candidate,” Duff said.

On giving parliament powers to check candidates’ credentials, he said the assembly now had “sufficient maturity and experience” to perform this task. He denied it was an attempt to muzzle the Eurosceptic voice in parliament.

Other plans include moving the date of the election from June to May, weekend voting and reform of the system of immunity for MEPs.

Duff said he accepts his proposals will require a treaty change and would be subject to possibly tortuous negotiation between parliament and member states. All attempts at similar reform in the past have been blocked by member states.

But he is optimistic his report will be adopted by parliament by the end of the current mandate next year, allowing the issue to be taken up by the Swedish presidency of the EU in the second half of 2009.

He hopes the new system will be place by 2014.