Czech Parliament and the CoFoE: Observers, Facilitators and Absentees

Czech Republic is one of the more Eurosceptic countries in the EU and both chambers of its Parliament are rather active in the political dialogue with the Commission. The Conference on the Future of Europe eventually proceeded just before the Czech Presidency in the Council. This meant that in the first half of 2022, the delegates of the Czech Parliament to the Conference also held the formal role of observers in the Conference’s Executive Board. Upon the completion of the Conference’s work, it was up to the Czech Presidency to coordinate the Council’s follow-up, which led to the Conference and its outcome being featured in the parliamentary dimension of the presidency. These factors seem to invite interest in the Conference from the Czech Parliament and could have perhaps facilitated an active role of the Czech Parliament’s delegates. However, the actual record paints a different picture. The Czech Parliament did not systematically monitor the activities of its delegates to the Conference or mandate them. There was no significant party-political activity in the Parliament concerning the Conference. Stronger politicisation of the Conference was apparent among the Czech members of the European Parliament. However, this forum was largely detached from the national political arena and public space. Delegates from the Senate viewed their role as observers, or, at most, facilitators of the dialogue between the citizens and the EU institutions, understanding that citizens should have been the main actors of the Conference. They were able to follow their topics of interest within the Conference’s Working Groups. Delegates from the Chamber of Deputies were largely absent from the later stages of the Conference. Consequently, the Czech delegates did not engage in any significant inter-parliamentary cooperation during the Conference. Undoubtedly, many factors contributed to this outcome, including technical ones. It seems that the Czech Parliament did not view the Conference as a new arena for active pursuit of its priorities, but rather an opportunity to gather input from citizens, which was arguably the main point of the Conference.