EU ministers responsible for cohesion policy have been invited by the Czech Presidency of the EU Council to Prague on Friday 2 September for a general debate on the role of cohesion policy and the direction it will take after 2027, as well as on the role of cohesion policy in the management of unpredictable events (pandemics, wars, energy crises, etc.).
The first debate will focus on the integration of cohesion policy into the new tools being developed at EU level, such as the Recovery and Resilience Facility, says the Czech Presidency. This is an important issue for the current Commissioner for Regional Policy and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, who has repeatedly expressed concerns about duplicating European action (see EUROPE 12887/2). The results of these discussions will contribute to the preparation of the Council conclusions, which should be approved at the next General Affairs Council in Brussels on 22 November.
As for the second debate, the Czech Presidency will look at the extent to which cohesion policy should be used in response to different global crises. This is a strong fear expressed by the beneficiary regions and Member States, which see cohesion policy regularly diverted from its initial objective to respond to crises (see EUROPE 12930/17).
The informal meeting is expected to last all morning and to end at around 2 p.m. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)