Brussels, 16/10/2002 (Agence Europe) - Albert Bore, President of the Regions declared last week at a committee plenary session that, "We welcome the Commission report and its conclusion that ten countries are ready for accession, from the bottom of our hearts". Mr Bore pointed to the action taken by the committee in this context, essentially: the holding of conferences on enlargement in accession countries, in co-operation with local and regional bodies in these countries, the setting up of three joint consultative committees with Polish, Czech and Cypriot organisations. The joint committee with Cyprus held its inaugural session on 14 October in Nicosia, attended by the Vice President of the Committee of the Regions, Jean-Louis Joseph and the Cypriot Foreign Affairs Minister, Ioannis Kassoulides: co-Presidents Karl-Heinz Klär, Secretary of State for the Rhineland-Palatinate and the Mayor of Nicosia, Michael Zambelas.
During the session the committee adopted several opinions. They criticised the fact that local and regional administrations are not considered as partners in social dialogue by the Commission when they in fact employ more than 9.4 million people. According to the Swedish rapporteur, Anders Gustav (EPP), the success of the social agenda will be via the ability of local and regional bodies themselves to propose solutions to citizens. Mr Gustav said that it was not enough to acknowledge the importance of the scale of local and regional scales but afford them the mandate and necessary instruments.