the European Citizens’ Initiative – Empowering European Citizens within the Institutional Triangle: A Political and Legal Analysis

Abstract The article presents the origins of the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) and traces the variety of issues that arose in debate between the Commission, Parliament and Council during the passage of the Regulation, which now defines the procedural rules of the instrument. Its nature is assessed by detailed analysis of the procedural requirements and the provisions surrounding them. This is followed by an elaboration of the ECI's potential contribution to the political system of the EU, and the ways in which its use could remedy the EU's ‘democratic deficit’. Particular attention is given to the impact of the rules upon the European Commission.