Brussels, 18/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 17 June, the MEPs of the committee on regional development (REGI) of the European Parliament met the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Cretu, for the second time this year (see EUROPE 11233). The simplification of the European funds, the Juncker plan and the problems certain member states are having to present operational programmes were among the main points tackled during their discussions.
“I feel that this meeting has come at just the right time”, the Romanian Commissioner started by saying. Last week saw the informal meeting of the Cohesion Council in Riga, which “led to extremely useful conclusions for growth and employment in Europe”.
During her presentation, Cretu dealt with three main subjects: issues related to investment in the economy, increasing institutional resources and good governance and, finally, simplifying administrative procedures.
Investment in the real economy. The Commissioner hopes to double the funding in the framework of the cohesion policy compared to the previous period. “This would raise between €40 and €70 billion in the real economy”. A further aim is to contribute to the completion of the Energy Union (€38 billion) and of the Digital Single Market (€20 billion). The Juncker plan, which will unquestionably squeeze the funds initially earmarked for the regions, has been the subject of serious concerns over at the Parliament.
Institutional resources and good governance. “Reinstating administrative capacity is a priority, because the performance of the European programmes are sources of administrative and institutional capacity”, she explained. The Commission referred to the 'REGIO peer-to-peer' initiative, which will provide a framework for exchanges of experience and best practice between the member states and the various players concerned. The Commission is also currently working with Transparency International on an 'integrity pact' to fight corruption and fraud.
Several MEPs raised the issue of the task force expert committee (see EUROPE 11284) which monitors member states struggling to absorb their funds. “Since my visit to Bulgaria, I have been able to observe just how much progress the task force has made”, she said. As regards the operational programmes, the problematic cases of Romania, southern Italy and Greece have been discussed with the Commission.
Simplification. The Commission has set in place a high-level group chaired by the former Commissioner Siim Kallas (see EUROPE 11331). “This group will make its first recommendations in 2016”, she announced. “But at the same time, we need checks to avoid any fraud”, she explained.
The next meeting will be held in September. (Pascal Hansens)