Comity of Regions discusses best use of regional policy to face ageing population

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The Comity of the Regions (CoR), the EU body representing the interest of local authorities, organised a conference entitled ‘Building Cohesion in an Ageing Europe’. The aim was to look at ways to make the best use of the structural funds, managed by both the CoR and the Member States, to prepare for the ageing population. Best practices were also presented.


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All participants agreed that the fact that people are living longer should be considered by the public opinion and the decision-makers as a chance and that more emphasis should be put on the opportunities rather than always focusing on the challenges. There was a large consensus that one of the values of the regional policy should be to help create jobs so that people can stay active longer and therefore preserve the European welfare systems. One possible way is to increase the budget allocated in the European Social Fund (ESF) to training. It was also felt that regions should invest more in generic health, i.e. campaigns to make people aware of consequences of adopting unhealthy lifestyles and help the young to look after their health. Other policies that were of relevance for regional policy included: promote mobility by improving transport, ensure quality of services, and develop the use of IT to avoid people being isolated.


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The Committee of the Regions – An introduction


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The Committee of the Regions (CoR) is the political assembly that provides local and regional authorities with a voice at the heart of the European Union.


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Established in 1994, the CoR was set up to address two main issues. Firstly, about three quarters of EU legislation is implemented at local or regional level, so it makes sense for local and regional representatives to have a say in the development of new EU laws. Secondly, there were concerns that the public was being left behind as the EU steamed ahead. Involving the elected level of government closest to the citizens was one way of closing the gap.


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The Treaties oblige the Commission and Council to consult the Committee of the Regions whenever new proposals are made in areas that have repercussions at regional or local level. The Maastricht Treaty set out 5 such areas – economic and social cohesion, trans-European infrastructure networks, health, education and culture. The Amsterdam Treaty added another five areas to the list – employment policy, social policy, the environment, vocational training and transport – which now covers much of the scope of the EU’s activity.


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Outside these areas, the Commission, Council and European Parliament have the option to consult the CoR on issues if they see important regional or local implications to a proposal. The CoR can also draw up an opinion on its own initiative, which enables it to put issues on the EU agenda.


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There are three main principles at the heart of the Committee’s work:


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Subsidiarity


This principle, written into the Treaties at the same time as the creation of the CoR, means that decisions within the European Union should be taken at the closest practical level to the citizen. The European Union, therefore, should not take on tasks which are better suited to national, regional or local administrations.


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Proximity


All levels of government should aim to be ‘close to the citizens’, in particular by organising their work in a transparent fashion, so people know who is in charge of what and how to make their views heard.


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Partnership


Sound European governance means European, national, regional and local government working together – all four are indispensable and should be involved throughout the decision making process.


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