The Additional Protocol adds a new dimension to the European Charter (ETS No. 122) by providing an international legal guarantee of the right to participate in the affairs of a local authority. The right to participate in the affairs of a local authority denotes the right to seek to determine or to influence the exercise of a local authority's powers and responsibilities. Parties to this protocol are required to take legal and other measures to facilitate the exercise of and give effect to this right. The Protocol also requires measures be taken which are necessary to ensure that the ethical integrity and transparency of the exercise of local authorities’ powers and responsibilities are not jeopardised by the exercise of the right to participate.

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