On 29 November Portal2EU, a group of Europaeum Scholars presented their ideas about what makes effective, accessible, and transparent consultation platforms to a mix of academics and policy makers at the headquarters of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Portal2EU developed their ideas through an in-depth analysis of the EU’s ‘Have your Say’ platform and interviews with key stakeholders. ‘Have Your Say’ was introduced by the EU in 2015 to deepen its democratic legitimacy and enhance public participation. This platform provides an opportunity for European citizens to engage in policymaking that impacts them. Although the OECD judges that ‘Have Your Say’ remains a frontrunner in the use of public consultations, there are certain challenges that impede wider citizen engagement. These challenges are what Portal2EU sought to address.
Their key recommendations about how to improve the accessibility, transparency, and outreach of ‘Have Your Say’ are summarised in their policy brief and their policy report outlines their research in more detail. They will shortly publish an essay outlining some of their findings in the volume Improving the Inclusivity of IO Rulemaking, ed. Jan Wouters and Alberto Morales. This essay further considers the implications of the group’s analysis for other international organizations such as the World Bank, who have their own online consultation platforms.
