Brussels, 16/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European regions and local governments are expecting “ambitious” proposed budgets from the European Commission and they hope to play a political role in the EUROPE 2020 strategy. These positions were presented to the President of the Commission, José Manuel Barroso, by the President of the Committee of the Regions, Mercedes Bresso, and the Presidents of the local and regional associations of the EU. On Thursday 16 June, Barroso held a working lunch, the fourth of its kind, with Bresso and her colleagues. During the meeting, Bresso, who met the press afterwards, stressed the importance placed by the regions and the local governments on cohesion policy: “We know that there is a crisis, but we also believe that it is a duty and a requirement to create a feeling of belonging among the European citizens. Europe must not hide itself away: it must make itself visible to every citizen in each region, town and borough”. The regional and local representatives note that many of the aspects of the EUROPE 2020 strategy relate to local issues and that, in order to achieve them, all levels of responsibility should be involved from the start. During lunch with Barroso, Bresso and her colleagues even raised the issue of the neighbourhood policy: they voiced their concern that the EU is aware “of troubled times” in its relations with the countries to the south of the Mediterranean, but that it is also keen to “lend its support to the process of democratisation”. President Barroso noted the information given to him and said that he was looking for a way to make relations with the local administrations more fluid and effective. (G.Ba/Gp/transl.fl)