Brussels, 04/07/13 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 3 July, the president of the Committee of the Regions (CoR), Ramon Luis Valcarcel and the head of the Croatian delegation, Vojko Obersnel, discussed the future of the local and regional authorities in Croatia, following the country's entry into the European Union.
Luis Valcarcel hailed the “historic change for Croatia and the European Union” and highlighted the fact that Croatia's accession to the EU was more than simply a political success but also the completion of a “peace project”. He invited the new Croatian delegation to “take its rightful place” at the CoR, “which is a fundamental regional development tool and a key for finding a way out of the crisis in a difficult political, social and financial context”.
Obersnel, the mayor of Rijeka emphasised that “Croatia has been built under European influence and its accession marks the end of a process”. He regretted that the local and regional authorities “had not always received the attention they deserved” but pointed out that the EU represents “a unique opportunity” for enhancing local democracy. It is also a means of responding to the economic crisis affecting the country: “the cities and municipalities play an important role in this effort because they are the most close to citizens and can therefore respond to their concerns”.
Questioned about the influence of the CoR in the legislative process, Luis Valcárcel, pointed out that the advisory body was, above all, “the guardian of the subsidiarity principle”, a principle that had been included in the Lisbon Treaty. He concluded that “we are politicians, elected on programmes. The opinions that we give, concern the daily lives of citizens and we must ensure that this proximity guides the European institutions”. (LM/transl.fl)