1.2.2014

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 32/34

(1)

The Treaty of Lisbon enhances the role of European Union citizens as political actors by establishing a close link between citizens, the exercise of their political rights and the democratic life of the Union. Article 10(1) and (3) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) states that the functioning of the Union shall be founded on representative democracy and that every citizen of the Union shall have the right to participate in the democratic life of the Union. Article 10(2) TEU, which constitutes an expression of such principles, establishes that citizens are directly represented at Union level in the European Parliament and that the Heads of State or Government and the Governments which represent the Member States in the European Council and in the Council are themselves democratically accountable either to their national Parliaments, or to their citizens.

(2)

According to Article 20 TFEU, the status of Union citizenship is additional to national citizenship.

(3)

Article 21 TFEU and Article 45 of the EU Charter of Fundamental rights confer on EU citizens the fundamental right to freely move and reside within the European Union.

(4)

The objective of the present Recommendation is to enhance the right to participate in the democratic life of the Union and the Member States of EU citizens who make use of their right to free movement within the Union.

(5)

As underlined in the EU Citizenship Report 2010 (1), one of the problems Union citizens from certain Member States face as political actors within the Union, is that they lose the right to vote (they are ‘榙isenfranchised‘� in national elections of their home Member State once they have resided in another Member State for a given period of time.

(6)

Currently, no MemberStatehas a general policy granting Union citizens from other Member States residing on its territory the right to vote in national elections. Consequently, disenfranchised Union citizens are usually left without the right to vote in national elections in any of the Member States.

(7)

The current situation may be perceived as out of keeping with the founding premise of Union citizenship, namely that it is additional to national citizenship and is designed to give additional rights to Union citizens, whereas in this case the exercise of the right of free movement may lead to losing a right of political participation.

(8)

Moreover, although Union citizens thus disenfranchised retain the right to elect members of the European Parliament, they do not have the right to participate in the national processes leading to the composition of national governments, the members of which compose the Council, the Union‘檚 other co-legislator.

(9)

This loss of the right to vote in national elections in the country of nationality because of the exercise of the right to move in another EU country is perceived by Union citizens as a gap in their political rights.

(10)

In the EU Citizenship Report 2013 ‘楨U citizens: your rights, your future‘�a href="#ntr2-L_2014032EN.01003401-E0002" id="ntc2-L_2014032EN.01003401-E0002" shape="rect"> (2)