The President of the European Parliament's Committee on Regional Development (REGI), Younous Omarjee (France, GUE/NGL), in agreement with political coordinators, has sent a letter on Tuesday 17 March on behalf of his committee to President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, to activate the legislative urgency procedure in order to take on board announcements made by the European Commission last Friday in response to the Coronavirus crisis.
“We must respond as urgently as possible by activating all the various strands of the Cohesion Policy, to regarding the catastrophic situation created by the Coronavirus epidemic”, said Mr Omarjee about the situation. “Any delay will mean more lives lost and greater difficulties for Europe's regions, businesses and citizens”.
Parliamentary work has indeed slowed down due to the virus (see EUROPE 12437/24), which has prompted parliamentary committees to prioritise their legislative dossiers. Thus, following the European Commission's announcements amending the Common Provisions Regulation between the structural and investment funds, the President wants to speed up the legislative work under the European Parliament's Rules of Procedure (Rule 163) in order to be able to hold a vote in plenary as soon as possible.
Approval from the EU Council. According to a diplomatic source, all European Commission measures, including the €37 billion initiative to mobilise the cash available in the structural and investment funds (see EUROPE 12446/2), will be approved tomorrow without amendments by the Ambassadors to the Union at the meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives.
What about the Just Transition Fund? According to our information, the legislative timetable for internal negotiations on the regulation establishing the Just Transition Fund is gradually falling behind schedule as a result of coronavirus. A decision taken in the Conference of Committee Chairs on the division of competences between the BUDG, ENVI and ITRE Committees was expected on 10 March, but was not reached. However, negotiations are gradually progressing, particularly in respect of the Committee on Budgets. The last timetable provided for a vote to take place at the REGI Committee in June, but we are told that it may well be delayed. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)