What changed between the plenary report and the adopted text

Changed:C. whereas in 2024, Parliament received 1 518 petitions, which represents an increase of 4.34,3 % compared to the 1 452 petitions it received in 2023 and of 19.819,8 % compared to the 1 217 petitions it received in 2022; whereas the total amount of petitions received continues to be sensibly lower than the peaks reached in 2013 and 2014, where the Parliament received 2 891 and 2 715 petitions respectively;

Changed:G. whereas of the 1 518 petitions submitted in 2024, 611 were declared inadmissible and 31 were withdrawn; whereas the high and rising percentage of inadmissible petitions in 2024 (40.25(40,25 %) confirms that there is still a widespread lack of understanding about the scope of the EU’s areas of responsibility; whereas in order to reduce the number of inadmissible petitions, efforts still need to be made to clarify further the scope of the EU’s fields of activity;

Changed:M. whereas each petition is considered and examined carefully, efficiently and transparently; whereas all petitioners have the right to receive a reply informing them about the decision on admissibility and follow-up actions taken by the committee within a reasonable period of time and in their own language or in the language used in the petition; whereas petition No 1056/2016 discussed on 19 March 2024 is requesting that Parliament allow for the tabling of petitions in national sign languages used in the EU;

Changed:Q. whereas 82 % of the petitions submitted to Parliament in 2024 were made through Parliament’s Petitions Web Portal, a figure nearly identical to 2023’s 82.482,4 %, reaffirming the portal as by far the most widely used channel for citizens to submit petitions to Parliament;

Changed:16. Stresses the important contribution made by the Committee on Petitions to the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities, as revealed by its treatment of a number of petitions on this topic, including consideration of petition No 1056/2016 on the submission of petitions in national sign languages; acknowledges, in this context, the efforts of Parliament’s services and notes that not just the best technical, but the most accessible solution for deaf citizens must be found in order to communicate with them in their own mother tongue – in national sign languages; requests the modification of the Rules of Procedure in close cooperation with the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in order to eliminate the mandatory exclusively written communication with citizens who are sign language users, deaf or hard of hearing so that, upon their request, they can use sign language during the procedure; notes that the education of pupils with disabilities, denial of healthcare services for persons with disabilities and the accessibility of public spaces and services were of further concern to petitioners in 2024; recalls the annual workshop of 2 December 2024 on the rights of persons with disabilities held by the Committee on Petitions, focusing on the state of play of the strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities 2021-2030 and urges the swift integration of petition findings into the mid-term review of the strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities 2021-2030, with measurable targets and budgetary commitments;

Changed:23. Underlines that the Petitions Web Portal is an essential tool for ensuring a smooth, efficient and transparent petitions process; welcomes the improvements made to the portal for the benefit of petitioners and stresses that efforts to make the portal more accessible must be continued, including making it more accessible for sign language users as requested in petition No 1056/2016 and for persons with disabilities; notes that the Petitions Web Portal is one of Parliament’s most visited websites, thus serving as a first point of contact with Parliament for many EU citizens;