This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.
Today, the Commission decided to partially register a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) entitled ‘European Cannabis Initiative’.
The organisers call on the Commission to:
- convene a trans-European citizens’ assembly on cannabis policies, including sanctions and the consistency of Member States’ policies;
- foster access to medical cannabis and allow the transportation of cannabis and its derivatives prescribed for therapeutic purposes to ensure the full enjoyment of the right to health; and
- allocate the necessary resources for researching cannabis for its therapeutic purposes.
The Commission has concluded that the initiative can only be registered as regards the second and third objectives, as only these objectives fulfil the requirements for registration. The Commission had to refuse the registration of the first objective of the initiative, as it falls outside the Commission’s powers to submit a proposal for a legal act on this matter.
The Commission has not analysed the substance of the proposals at this stage. The decision to register the initiative insofar as its second and third objectives are concerned, is of a legal nature and it does not prejudge the final legal and political conclusions of the Commission on this initiative and the action it would intend to take, if any, in case the initiative obtains the necessary support.
The partial registration followed a two-stage procedure, in which organisers, in a first stage, were invited to amend their initial initiative, taking into account the preliminary assessment of the Commission.
Next Steps
Following today’s partial registration, the organisers have six months to open the signature collection. If a European Citizens’ Initiative receives one million statements of support within one year from at least seven different Member States, the Commission will have to react. The Commission will have to decide whether to take action in response to the request or not and will be required to explain its reasoning.
Background
The European Citizens’ Initiative was introduced with the Lisbon Treaty as an agenda-setting tool in the hands of citizens. It was officially launched in April 2012. Once formally registered, a European Citizens’ Initiative allows one million citizens from at least seven EU Member States to invite the European Commission to propose legal acts in areas where it has the power to act. The conditions for admissibility are: (1) the proposed action does not manifestly fall outside the framework of the Commission’s powers to submit a proposal for a legal act, (2) it is not manifestly abusive, frivolous or vexatious and (3) it is not manifestly contrary to the values of the Union.
This is the first partial registration of an ECI since the new ECI Regulation started applying in January 2020. Since the beginning of the ECI, the Commission has registered 110 initiatives.
Leave a Reply