Dear visitor
Our vision for Europe
The European Conservatives and Reformists Group is a centre-right political group in the European Parliament, established in 2009 under the founding principles of the Prague Declaration. These principles brought together MEPs from across the European Union who supported a vision of common sense reform for the whole EU.
Since our foundation in 2009, we have been working hard towards an EU that gets back to basics to deliver common sense solutions. We believe that at the heart of every decision made by the EU, should be the consideration of whether or not it is adding value for hard-working taxpayers across the union.
To achieve this, ECR MEPs continue to focus their efforts on decentralisation, connecting people and business, promoting fair and free trade, and fostering a safe and secure Europe, among many other achievements.
Our efforts have delivered results improving the lives of citizens across the EU every day and we will continue promoting a wider agenda of long-term pan-European euro-realist reform. We will also carry on our hard work in securing a more flexible, open, and economically vibrant EU offering citizens and taxpayers tangible benefits.
With your support and the continued efforts of our MEPs, we believe that an EU that respects the wishes of its citizens, spends taxpayers’ money responsibly, and respects the sovereignty of its national governments, is an EU that can build a stronger future that better serves its citizens.
Yours sincerely,
Nicola Procaccini and Patryk Jaki
Co-Chairmen of the ECR Group in the European Parliament
Our values
WE AIM TO TAKE
EUROPE IN A NEW DIRECTION
The ECR Group is a centre-right
political group in the European
Parliament, founded in 2009
with a common cause to reform
the EU based on eurorealism,
respecting the sovereignty
of nations, and focusing on
economic recovery, growth
and competitiveness. From
its 8 founding Member States
with 54 MEPs in 2009, we now
have 81 members from 18 EU
Member States.
WE ARE EUROREALIST
NOT ANTI-EUROPEAN
Euro-realism is the driving
force of the ECR Group, which
distinguishes our agenda from
the other political groups in
the European Parliament. The
European Union needs a new
direction. Some argue that the
solution is more Europe, others
that the solution is no Europe.
We offer a bold alternative vision
of a reformed EU as a community
of nations cooperating in areas
where they have some common
interests that can best be
advanced by working together.
WE ARE THE VOICE OF
COMMON SENSE
The European Union has
overreached. It has become too
centralised, too ambitious,
and too out of touch with
ordinary citizens. We believe
in restoring common sense in
Brussels — advocating for the
equal treatment of all Member
States, pushing the EU to be
more fiscally responsible,
finding new ways to connect
people and business, creating
solutions to the migrant
crisis and the terrorist
threat, and adopting a global
approach to increase EU
competitiveness on the world
stage.
WE PROPOSE AN
ALTERNATIVE AGENDA
FOR THE EU
The ECR Group is at the
forefront of generating
forward-looking policy
proposals to design a reformed
European Union that is more
flexible, decentralised and
respects the wishes of its
Member States. Only an EU that
truly listens to its people
can offer real solutions to
the problems we face today. We
believe in cutting red tape,
in an EU run by national
governments not Brussels
bureaucrats, in doing less but
better, in an immigration
system that works, in spending
taxpayer money wisely, but
most of all, we believe in
fostering an EU that is safe,
secure, competitive and
prosperous for all.
The Prague Declaration
Conscious of the urgent need to reform the EU on the basis of Eurorealism, Openness, Accountability and Democracy, in a way that respects the sovereignty of our nations and concentrates on economic recovery, growth and competitiveness in 2009, our founding parties adopted the Prague Declaration which sets out our Principles and Values.
- Free enterprise, free and fair trade and competition, minimal regulation, lower taxation, and small government as the ultimate catalysts for individual freedom and personal and national prosperity.
- Freedom of the individual, more personal responsibility and greater democratic accountability.
- Sustainable, clean energy supply with an emphasis on energy security.
- The importance of the family as the bedrock of society.
- The sovereign integrity of the nation state, opposition to EU federalism and a renewed respect for true subsidiarity.
- The overriding value of the transatlantic security relationship in a revitalised NATO, and support for young democracies across Europe.
- Effectively controlled immigration and an end to abuse of asylum procedures.
- Efficient and modern public services and sensitivity to the needs of both rural and urban communities.
- An end to waste and excessive bureaucracy and a commitment to greater transparency and probity in the EU institutions and use of EU funds.
- Respect and equitable treatment for all EU countries, new and old, large and small.