The President of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), Karl-Heinz Lambertz, said it was absolutely necessary, after the European elections, to rethink the European Union and its relationship with its citizens, during a discussion with EUROPE ahead of the CoR plenary session on Wednesday 6 February.
The day before, the bureau of the Committee adopted a first version of the Bucharest Declaration, which should be adopted at the 8th European Summit of Regions and Cities, on 14 and 15 of next March. It lists around ten priorities (see other news), among which is the need to introduce a "permanent consultation" with citizens, a project that is close to the president's heart.
"There have been hundreds of initiatives over decades to open a dialogue and discuss Europe: we discuss Europe all the time", stressed Mr Lambertz, referring to the citizens' dialogues launched by the Committee of the Regions, those of the Commission and those initiated by the French President, Emmanuel Macron. "The positive conclusion is that it is happening, people are coming together and we are talking... but that is not enough now that we have entered the era of participatory democracy".
For him, it is therefore necessary to focus on two elements: participants and follow-up. "We must succeed in mobilising a representative dimension to the European population and the most scientific way to do this is using the system of drawing lots by category", he explained. Above all, in his opinion, "you need a well-established system that takes care of the follow-up, [because] the worst thing is to involve people, then come to conclusions and not follow up, letting things fester".
"It was necessary to systematise and have a long-term approach and, above all, separate it from the elections", he added. According to him, a fundamental principle is to avoid any mistrust among citizens and avoid electoral behaviour.
"That is why Mr Jahier (President of the European Economic and Social Committee) and I proposed an interinstitutional approach to systematize something over 5 years", he explained, before pointing out that the Committee was in discussions with the Secretariat-General of the European Commission and the European Parliament, as well as the Council of the European Union officials.
This proposal will be presented to EU leaders at the Sibiu Summit on 9 May, among the other priorities of the declaration. The President also hopes to reach as many European citizens as possible ahead of the European elections.
"There is a window of opportunity of almost a year", he emphasised, hoping to get things moving. To do so, the Committee's initiatives are numerous: in October 2018, the representatives adopted an opinion on the future of Europe; in March it will be the Bucharest Declaration; then, in June, the Committee should adopt an opinion with detailed "specifications" as a follow-up to the Bucharest Summit.
Brexit. On the issue of Brexit, whose negotiations seem inextricable (see other news), the President explained that the Committee was considering a post-Brexit cooperation structure with the British regions, similar to what is already being done with the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM). In addition, Mr Lambertz stressed the need to assist the regions most affected by the United Kingdom's exit from the EU, how about with the creation of a specific European fund, the details of which would still have to be determined.
Cohesion. Mr Lambertz regretted the delay in the EU's budget negotiations, indicating that it will inevitably have an impact on the regions. "When you play time, it's rarely those who want more money who win", he pointed out, drawing on his political experience.
Rule of law. During the plenary session, Committee members will pay tribute to Paweł Adamowicz, Mayor of Gdansk, who was recently murdered. In this respect, the President explained that the issue of respect for the rule of law in Poland or elsewhere could only be resolved at the level of local and regional authorities. Even so, he notes that "the situation is often better at the level of local authorities than at the national level".
Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. For Mr Lambertz, the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union is facing a particularly difficult environment. In addition to starting its first presidency, Romania must manage the end of a mandate with a huge number of interinstitutional meetings, face a European election that risks disrupting the European political landscape and support the talks for the next financial framework. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)