European Ombudsman invites citizens to tweet live questions to Barroso and Schulz

On 24 April 2012, from 10am to 12:30pm, the European Ombudsman P. Nikiforos Diamandouros is organising an event in the European Parliament in Brussels, entitled "Europe in crisis: the challenge of winning citizens' trust".

The keynote speakers are José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament, and Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the Prime Minister of Denmark and President of the Council of the EU.

During the event, European citizens will be able to tweet questions to the speakers, by using the Twitter hashtag #EO2012. As many questions as possible will be displayed in the seminar room, giving the speakers an opportunity to address them.

The event will be web-streamed live. The European Parliament and Europe by Satellite will also stream the event live.

According to the Ombudsman, the most important current issue at both the EU and the Member States levels is undoubtedly the economic and financial crisis and its implications for the future of the European Union. Citizens in many Member States of the EU are not only losing trust in their national governments. They are also increasingly sceptical of the EU's ability to find solutions to the worst crisis in its history. The event is a unique occasion to discuss these issues with speakers at the highest level and to explore positive and concrete ways for the EU to move forward.