A new initiative from the Danish Parliament gives Danish citizens a direct role in the democratic process
The Danish Parliament has introduced a new tool for direct democracy called ‘citizen’s initiative’. The new initiative enables Danish citizens to put an item of interest on the parliamentary agenda, if 50.000 people support it.
In January, a new website called borgerforslag.dk was launched, giving Danish citizens the opportunity to send political proposals to the Danish Parliament.
The Speaker of the Danish Parliament, Pia Kjærsgaard, welcomes the launch of the new website:
"It is a whole new form of civic engagement, which gives democracy an extra dimension. It will be exciting to see the submitted proposals, and follow how many supporters each proposal receives.”
Each proposal has to live up to the rules and procedures for the new initiative before they are posted on the website borgerforslag.dk. Among other things, each proposal must be written in Danish and has to be in compliance with the Danish Constitution. Furthermore, proposals may not be offensive or discriminatory in any way.
Several proposals have already been sent to the Parliament’s administration. So far six proposals have lived up to the rules and procedures and have been posted on borgerforslag.dk.
A proposal will be posted on the website for 180 days. If it manages to get 50.000 supporters, one of the political parties behind the ‘citizens’ initiative’ can choose to present the proposal in the Plenary Hall.
