One of the ideas that Brussels has come up with to familiarise citizens with the work of the European Parliament and to publicise the forthcoming elections for its renewal is a comic strip. It takes the form of a story in “instalments” based on life within the two official seats of the EP, one in Strasbourg and the other in the Belgian capital. Personalities and staff of the institution, drawn by expert pencils, explain in very simple language the various functions and procedures of the EP. They clarify its direct impact on the life of 450 million Europeans. “What is the position of the Parliament on the impact that the draft law on businesses in the chemicals sector will have?” asks a young girl who works in the building named after the statesman Paul Henri Spaak. A colleague replies to her question in the same “strip”: “We have listened to the arguments of the industrialists. We are discussing them. Our aim is to find the right balance. Water however is an essential resource and we will therefore protect it!”. The episodes of the weekly story can be found on the EP’s website , in the space dedicated to entertainment. This is just one of the initiatives aimed at publicising the activities, powers and organization of the EP, whose composition will be defined by citizens in the European elections being held in all 25 member states on 10-13 June. On the same site can be found the history, symbols, headquarters, posts, major issues discussed and legislative provisions taken in the course of the 1999-2004 legislature.
