Let’s celebrate the International Day of Parliamentarism!
Honoring progress, representation and open data in democracy
On June 30th, we celebrate the International Day of Parliamentarism, a day dedicated to reviewing the key achievements of parliaments and recognising the progress in becoming more representative and modern. This includes initiatives like involving more women and young Members of Parliament (MPs), adapting to new technologies and carrying out transparent self-assessments.
Parliaments continue to serve as the foundation of democracies and ensure that the voices of all people, especially the most vulnerable, are heard and cared for. Their role includes representing the people’s voice, passing laws, holding governments accountable and allocating funds for the implementation of laws and policies.
In the European Union, the European Parliament represents the voice of EU citizens through elections held every five years. This is the EU’s only directly elected institution, with 705 Members of European Parliament (MEPs) elected by EU citizens to safeguard the EU decision-making process. The number of MEPs elected in each country depends on the size of the population, with smaller countries receiving a proportionately higher number of seats. The next elections for the European Parliament and its respective MEPs will take place in 2024.
Open data initiatives can help citizens in making informed decisions, for example with the use of EU Integrity Watch. This platform leverages open data to inform society about the different decisions made within the European Parliament. This central hub provides online tools that allow citizens, journalists, and civil society to monitor the integrity of the decisions made. The platform collects and harmonises data, making it easily accessible and increasing transparency and quality of access to EU decision-making.
Open data can help citizens stay informed about parliamentary decisions and integrity. Do you want to explore more open data initiatives that support democracy? Watch the recording of the recent data.europa academy webinar ‘Stories of use cases: Open data and a new push for European democracy’, consult the slides or find interesting use cases on our website.
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