Brussels, 06/03/2003 (Agence Europe) - The United Kingdom wants to "devolve" regional policy back to Britain, Finance Minister Gordon Brown said when presenting a text, on Thursday, that should win the votes of main net contributor Member States but be rejected by others and the European Commission. The United Kingdom is proposing a "European framework for devolved regional policy". The Member States would decide on common principles, based on the Lisbon objectives (sustainable economic development, employment, fight against social exclusion), but the Community budget would only help countries that do not have the means to conduct their own regional policy, which would be determined in relation to national and no longer regional GDP. This threshold, which could be fixed at 90% of the Community average, would only allow inclusion of the ten new Member States plus Portugal and Greece, one expert says. The only other Community aid that the United Kingdom is proposing to maintain are "small initiatives" for cross-border cooperation (of the Interreg programme kind), and networks for exchanging best practices in the field of employment and equal opportunities. The United Kingdom greatly insists, in its document, on greater flexibility for State aid that should, according to Gordon Brown, accompany this radical reform of regional policy for the next package (2007-2013).
According to some estimates, the United Kingdom would thus reduce the regional policy budget by half, from EUR 40 billion for the year 2006 (decided in Copenhagen) to 20 billion in 2007. Gordon Brown considers that, rather than increase the budget of structural funds, it would be far better to approve a reasonable ceiling for European spending focused on the poorest Member States and, at the same time, provide far more freedom and flexibility to the other member countries so that they may tackle the problems in their own regions and areas.
The United Kingdom hopes to "reverse decades of centralisation" in Europe, Gordon Brown said. The British document stresses that simply following the current policy by increasing the budget "would mean that Britain would pay more but would not get more out". The report by Gordon Brown advocates making European regional policy follow the model of devolution policy conducted by the United Kingdom. There was a strong reaction from British Liberal Democrat MEPs Diana Wallis and Nick Clegg to this. The former denounced a "step backward for the regions" and the latter stressed that Gordon Brown should have started by admitting that the other EU countries have better economic results and better regional policies than the United Kingdom. The British document is more like a position paper than a consultation document, but the British government invites the British to make their observations known by 4 July.
If, in the debate on the next regional package (2007-2013), the Member States and the Commission all agree to give priority to the poorest Member States, another policy opposes the net contributors to the other Member States and to the European Commission. Commissioner Barnier will be in the British Midlands region on Friday. He is expected to regret that the United Kingdom no longer wants European regional policy financing beyond the poorest regions. He will also insist on the fact that the adoption of European multiannual programmes gives regions guarantee of support in the long term.
On Wednesday, Commissioner Barnier met members of the German government, one of the main countries opposed to renewal of the current system. Until recently, the Eastern Länder of the country, affected by the statistical effect of enlargement, were the only ones to call for continuing the policy outside Objective 1, while the government was opposed to it. During a meeting on 19 December between Chancellor Schröder and the leaders of all the Länder, all said they agreed wit the principle of maintaining aid outside Objective 1 but insisted on a restricted budget. This position has not yet been confirmed by the German government.
In January, the Commission approved a second progress report on the future of cohesion policy and is to present, in November or December, its proposals for the next regional package (see EUROPE of 24 to 31 January).