MEPs from the Committee on ‘Regional Development’ (REGI) expressed their concern in an exchange with a senior representative of the European Commission on Thursday 21 March about the increasingly likely risk of a significant delay in the implementation of structural and investment funds after 2020.
On that day, MEPs held a final debate under this mandate with Marc Lemaître, Director General of the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO), to take stock of the past and the challenges ahead for cohesion policy.
During his speech, Mr Lemaître highlighted the particularly laborious implementation of 2014-2020 cohesion policy in its early stages, due to the late adoption of the regulatory framework.
Consequently, he drew up a tight timetable to avoid such a delay again in the coming period. In particular, he expects Member States to present a roadmap at the end of June 2019 detailing the steps (including the adoption of partnership agreements) to enable programmes to be launched before the end of 2020.
This timetable seemed very ambitious to some MEPs, such as Constanze Krehl (S&D, Germany), co-rapporteur on the regulation laying down common provisions. The Member recalled the failures of the negotiations with the EU Council concerning the programming and strategic planning of funds.
She added that it was increasingly likely that an agreement on the multiannual financial framework (which conditions many aspects of cohesion policy) would only be reached in the second half of 2020. Ivana Maletić (EPP, Croatia), for her part, drove the point home by recalling that a large number of Member States did not want to be subject to the partnership principle (see EUROPE 12212/15).
During his speech, Mr Lemaître acknowledged that this was an "ideal" timetable, adding that it could not be more ambitious. In his view, success will depend on the willingness of Member States to make rapid progress on the contents of cohesion policy (which will be defined fairly quickly with the presentation of the roadmap) and on the multiannual financial framework.
But, for him, it is possible to build on the results obtained at the interinstitutional meeting, and he hopes to be able to continue the discussions "bilaterally" with the Member States on the Regulation laying down common provisions, the European Social Fund Plus, the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund.
The Executive Director also seemed to issue a warning. "This will be the litmus test for Member States, whether they are serious about engaging with us or not. It is clear that on the Commission side if they are not willing to tell us what strategic approach they want to have for Cohesion policy for the future, there will be no discussion", he commented.
The European Parliament is preparing to adopt its position at first reading on Wednesday 27 March on the regulation on common provisions, following the recent failure of interinstitutional negotiations. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)