At the 11th conference on subsidiarity in Warsaw, organised on Friday 25 October by the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the Mazovian Voivodeship, the Union of Regions (Voivodeships) of the Republic of Poland presented its position on the Cohesion Policy after 2027, rejecting any proposal to centralise the structure of the future EU budget and to replace regional Cohesion Policy programmes with national plans.
The Polish regions strongly disagree with the concept of centralising the structure of the future EU budget, which would involve replacing Cohesion Policy programmes – currently drawn up and managed by the Polish regions in partnership with European, national and local players – with national programmes that are drawn up and negotiated at national level and which cover all regions (see EUROPE 13498/11, 13498/12).
Regional and local leaders from across the EU were unanimous in their support for the Polish regions’ initiative, noting that centralisation was not only contrary to the principle of subsidiarity as enshrined in the EU Treaty, but would also considerably reduce the effectiveness of efforts designed to strengthen economic cohesion on the ground. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)