Member States’ ambassadors to the EU (Coreper II) endorsed, on Wednesday 29 March, EU Council conclusions on the Communication ‘Harnessing talent in Europe’s regions’ (see EUROPE 13101/15). A text that shares the European Commission’s diagnosis, but encourages not to increase the administrative burden further.
The conclusions thus welcome the European Commission’s willingness to support regions facing or at risk of facing a “talent development trap”. In fact, according to the institution, 82 EU regions risk being caught in a vicious circle where, due to a lack of workers, economic performance stagnates, leading to a further decline in employment opportunities.
They thus “take note” of the plan to launch a ‘Talent Booster Mechanism’ specifically dedicated to the demographic problems of these areas of the EU.
Therefore, the conclusions encourage Member States and stakeholders to “explore the possibilities offered by the Communication”, in cooperation with the Commission. They also stress the importance of coordinating EU programmes and funding sources. Similarly, they reiterate the need for comprehensive economic regeneration strategies coupled with targeted and territorialised measures, such as smart specialisation strategies.
However, the text insists that this must be done “without increasing the administrative burden”. In fact, in the context of the future of cohesion policy, Member States have already warned about the potential deleterious effects of a multiplication of instruments (see EUROPE 13064/17).
Read the draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/63p (Original version in French by Hélène Seynaeve)