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When it comes to influencing the European Commission, it can be more effective to take to the streets rather than gather signatures. Here, a French farmer, protesting against price increases and regulations in 2024. <\/p>\n
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Well over a decade after its launch, the European Union\u2019s tool for citizen participation has largely failed to take off, especially set against the extensive popular rights enjoyed in Switzerland. Why? An analysis by Domhnall O\u2019Sullivan.\n<\/p>\n
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February 5, 2026 – 09:00\n<\/p>\n
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\n As part of the democracy team, I report on the dynamic relationship between citizens and their institutions in Switzerland and abroad.
\nBorn in Ireland, I have a BA in European Studies and MA in International Relations. I’ve been at SWI swissinfo.ch since 2017. <\/p>\n
As ongoing debates over a new set of bilateral deals with Brussels show, any hint of European Union (EU) meddling in Swiss domestic affairs \u2013 and especially its direct democracy \u2013 tends to spark criticism. But influence can flow the other way too.<\/p>\n Recently, a European Citizens\u2019 Initiative (ECI) \u2013 a signature-gathering tool for proposing EU reform \u2013 came with a Swiss twist. \u201cHouseEurope!External link<\/a>\u201d, which called for incentives to renovate rather than demolish old buildings, was linked to Switzerland\u2019s top university, the federal institute of technology ETH Zurich. Not only did a professor from its architecture department co-initiate the campaign; the department itself is listed as having contributed CHF50,000 ($63,300) to it. A canton Zug foundation was also a donor.<\/p>\n Foreign interference from a non-EU state? Not according to ETH Zurich \u2013 the CHF50,000, it told Swissinfo, was an estimate of \u201cnon-monetary support\u201d like research input, not a cash donation. But the initiative is still revealing for a more prosaic reason: despite Swiss-based backing, it turned out to be a textbook ECI \u2013 it failed. By the January 31 deadline, it had gathered some 83,000 names; one million are required.<\/p>\n Signature problem<\/p>\n In missing the mark, it is in good company. Since the ECI was introduced in 2012, just 14 of 125 registered initiatives have managed to reach the threshold necessary to put a proposal onto the European Commission\u2019s desk. As such, while its supporters still describe the ECI as the world\u2019s only transnational instrument of direct democracy, even they admit it has fallen short of its original aim: to help close the EU\u2019s democratic deficit \u2013 the gap between decision-makers in Brussels and citizens on the continent, who feel their voice is not heard.<\/p>\n Struggles to meet the signature quota are one symptom, which a look at Switzerland helps to put in context. In the Alpine nation \u2013 which admittedly has a long direct democracy tradition \u2013 campaigners routinely collect the 100,000 names needed to force a constitutional vote. The ECI threshold, at one million, is ten times higher \u2013 but then the EU\u2019s population is 55 times bigger. And yet most ECIs never come close; many fizzle out with a few thousand names.<\/p>\n One reason for this is obvious: the transnational nature of the tool. It\u2019s neither easy nor cheap to run a campaign across multiple languages and countries (signature thresholds also need to be met in at least seven EU states). Public visibility is also tough in a continent-wide setting, where media remain largely national and EU issues rarely dominate headlines. Meanwhile, political parties \u2013 and private firms \u2013 which are important for signature-gathering in Switzerland, are less engaged at the EU level, leaving campaigns more dependent on NGOs and private donors.<\/p>\n For an overview of how popular initiatives and referendums work in Switzerland, watch our video explainer below:<\/strong><\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Swiss democracy\n <\/p>\n How Swiss direct democracy works <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Mar 31, 2025 <\/p>\n What do direct democratic tools like popular initiatives and referendums really entail? And how has this unique system evolved over time?\u00a0 <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: How Swiss direct democracy works No binding impact<\/p>\n Yet even beyond practical issues, the ECI is simply a weak instrument by design. Swiss initiatives and referendums involve votes on concrete, legally binding texts. ECIs, says Daniel Moeckli from the University of Zurich, are \u201cagenda\u201d initiatives \u2013 they carry more weight than a petition, but far less than a people\u2019s initiative. Even when an ECI reaches one million signatures, the European Commission is only obliged to examine the issue \u2013 but it doesn\u2019t have to act on it. Not to mention that there is no public vote.<\/p>\n Left to its own discretion, the Commission can simply choose to ignore the proposals, or only implement them where it sees fit. On its website, it refers to ECIs which make the signature threshold as \u201csuccessful\u201d, but this is rather optimistic \u2013 in reality only a few have led to real change. The very first \u201csuccessful\u201d initiative, \u201cRight2WaterExternal link<\/a>\u201d, prompted partial revisions of water-quality rules in the EU. But for most others, including a proposed ban on animal testingExternal link<\/a>, the Commission found reasons not to do anything.<\/p>\n In Switzerland, too, the implementation of initiatives can spark debate. But here, the final authority is parliament, which is accountable to voters. In the EU, it\u2019s the Commission \u2013 an unelected body already accused of embodying the \u201cdemocratic deficit\u201d the ECI was meant to tackle in the first place. Critics warn scepticism will deepen if initiatives don\u2019t deliver. As EU Ombudsman Emily O\u2019Reilly put itExternal link<\/a>: \u201cif a successful initiative never results in a proposal for new EU rules [\u2026] people will stop believing in the process \u2013 not just in the ECI but, potentially, in democracy itself\u201d.<\/p>\n Aware of these criticisms, the EU hasn\u2019t been entirely inactive. Legal challenges brought by frustrated campaigners have pushed the Commission to take a more permissive stance on admissibility of initiatives. Another pending case, linked to the animal welfare ECI \u201cEnd the Cage AgeExternal link<\/a>\u201d, could clarify how far the Commission is bound to respond \u2013 or not \u2013to successful ECIs. Brussels has also improved the technical and digital infrastructure for registering signatures and funding sources, making life easier for campaigners.<\/p>\n Yet not many still expect ECIs to evolve into hard tools for proposing or rejecting laws via popular votes. Instead, some argue that the future lies in doubling down on its agenda-setting role. Alberto Alemanno from the HEC Paris business school has writtenExternal link<\/a> that, as civil society comes under pressure in parts of Europe, the ECI at least offers a \u201cguaranteed platform\u201d for transnational engagement. On this front, even a failed idea can claim success if it sparks cross-border debate, he reckons.<\/p>\n Others see the ECI as just one element within a wider \u2013 and underestimated \u2013 European direct democracy landscape. According to MoeckliExternal link<\/a>, some 6,874 initiatives of various kinds were launched across Council of Europe countries between 1990 and 2020; roughly two-thirds of them were \u201cagenda\u201d initiatives. Here, the ECI has acted as a catalyst, Moeckli says, in that it prompted several similar tools at the national level, especially in northern Europe. Even in Switzerland, some are calling for such anExternal link<\/a> instrument \u2013 the so-called \u201cpeople\u2019s motion\u201d.<\/p>\n Grassroots enthusiasm, limited impact: in Italy, direct democracy meets some of the same hurdles as the ECI:<\/strong><\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Digital Democracy\n <\/p>\n E-collecting brings new lease of life to Italian democracy\u00a0 <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Jul 31, 2025 <\/p>\n An e-ID and a state-run platform for collecting digital signatures have boosted the paths to participation in Italy \u2013 but it\u2019s not all plain sailing towards digital democracy. <\/p>\n
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