The European Commission yesterday launched an internet discussion on the future of Europe in all its 20 languages, including Maltese, in a bid to encourage its citizens to take part in the debate.

Maltese citizens can submit their opinions, in Maltese, about what they think of the EU and what they think should be the main functions of the Union in the future.

The new website is part of an aggressive strategy aimed at making citizens feel closer to the EU and comes in response to last year's rejection of the EU Constitution by the electorates of France and the Netherlands.

The strategy incorporates campaigns by the Commission's representation offices in its member states.

The Commission said yesterday that the discussion is part of its "Plan D" for Dialogue, Debate and Democracy in response to a call by the European Council for a period of reflection on the proposed constitutional treaty.

The Commission's vice president Margot Wallstrom, who is responsible for institutional relations and communication strategy, urged people to come forward with their ideas in order to make a better Europe.

"I often hear people say that they have lost confidence in the European Union because they feel that it has taken on too many responsibilities and has become very complex and difficult to understand. At the same time when we ask Europeans in opinion polls what they want the European Union to deal with, issues such as unemployment, globalisation, pensions, healthcare, education and the environment are mentioned."

The feedback will be included in the Commission's report on the period of reflection which will be presented to the European Council next June.

The current Austrian presidency has said from the beginning of its six-month mandate that it wants to clear the existing obstacles so that the EU will decide by the middle of this year how to proceed on the Constitution. This debate is set to dominate the next meeting of EU leaders in June.

The discussion forum can be found at: http://europa.eu.int/debateeurope/