The chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development (REGI), Younous Omarjee (The Left, France), suggested the creation of a new EU fund to help EU regions adapt to climate change and its consequences, while speaking at a video conference meeting with members of the Cohesion Alliance on Thursday 9 September.
For the MEP, the recent natural disasters that hit several Member States during the summer and the impact of global warming on the economic activities of the EU’s regions argue for the creation of a new “component” dedicated to climate change in the framework of cohesion policy.
“In the same way that the European Commission has produced the Just Transition Fund (originally a proposal by Parliament), I would like to launch the idea: would it not be possible, during this legislature or later, to consider a fund to help European regions adapt to global warming? This is an idea that we on our committee want to propose”, he said to the audience, which included the chair of the European Committee of the Regions, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, and the Commissioner for Cohesion Policy and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira.
Earlier this week, in a debate in the REGI committee, MEPs all called for a review of the EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF), as the annual budget is deemed too low to cover the costs of climate change at present (see EUROPE 12784/9).
On Tuesday 7 September, a series of oral questions were tabled by Mr Omarjee on behalf of the REGI Committee on the need to map the sectors and territories most exposed to climate change. Here, the European Commission is asked whether it is considering the creation of a fund.
A debate on the subject will be held next week at the plenary session in Strasbourg. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)