Brussels, 19/02/2014 (Agence Europe) - The Committee of the Regions (CoR) will not introduce a legal challenge to legislation on the macroeconomic conditions introduced in recent cohesion policy reform, as it had previously threatened to do. Nonetheless, the CoR reserves the right to bring legal actions before the Court of Justice of the European Union after having evaluated future possible cases of decisions triggering concrete suspensions (suspension of commitments or payments from structural funds in the event of non-respect by member states of EU economic injunctions for excessive budget deficits).
Following a more detailed legal analysis of the latest casting of macroeconomic conditionality, the Committee concluded that the amendments brought by the European Parliament to the Commission's initial proposal had improved the legal framework, particularly with regard to proportionality. A source close to the dossier indicated that the CoR considers it more appropriate for it to join with a member state or region appealing to the European Court of Justice against a given decision than begin legal action at this stage without any concrete cases. Upstream, the CoR is determined to follow all the different phases involved in leading to a suspension decision and being involved in a structured dialogue between the European Parliament and Commission to this effect.
The Committee of the Regions has had two months since the publication at the end of December of the new legislation, to challenge it in the European Court of Justice under the principles of proportionality and subsidiarity. (MD/transl.fl)