Brussels, 07/05/2004 (Agence Europe) - The Presidents of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, and of the Committee of the Regions (CoR), Peter Straub, will co-chair two events organised by the European Commission in the regional sector, in Brussels on 10 and 11 May (at the premises of the EP). Firstly, they will preside the first "Dialogue with associations of territorial authorities on making EU policies", which will take place on Monday 10 May (from 9am to 10.30), and will be attended by the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Jacques Barrot. They will then lead the work of the Third European Forum for Cohesion, which will start on 10 May at 11 am, continuing on Tuesday 11 May. The former European Commissioner and current French Foreign Minister, Michel Barnier, the author of the third report on economic and social cohesion, will take the floor on this occasion, on "A new partnership for cohesion", to be attended by his successor Jacques Barrot and Commissioners Mario Monti (Competition), Peter Balazs (who works with Mr Barrot), and Stavros Dimas (Employment and Social Affairs).
With this first meeting between President Prodi and the associations of territorial authorities, the European Commission bears out its determination to involve regional and local politicians more closely in the making of European policies. Welcoming this, Peter Straub reiterates the extra role the CoR and regional associations have to play in this process. During this meeting, President Prodi will speak of his hopes for an exchange of views on the EU's political and financial priorities. The Commission has proposed a budget of 336 billion EUR for regional policy, with a main objective of helping the poorest regions of an enlarged EU to get up to the same level as the richest, the CoR points out in a press release, adding that President Straub feels that this is "a correct and realistic sum". Among the associations represented in this dialogue will be the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, the Association of European Border Regions, the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe, and the Assembly of Regions in Europe.
The 3rd European cohesion forum will bring together over 1,000 delegates from the 25 Member States of the EU, to discuss the future priorities of the cohesion policy, and the reform of the implementation system. Among the political leaders to take part in this form are: the Czech and Hungarian Prime Ministers Vladimir Spidla and Peter Medgyessy, Irish Minister of State for Finance, Tom Parlon, the French Minister for Transport, Municipalities, Tourism and Maritime Affairs Gilles de Robien, the Slovenian Minister for Employment, Vlado Dimovski and the Finnish Regional Affairs Minister Hannes Manninen, and the First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan, together with representatives of the CoR such as the Belgian Jean-Claude Can Cauwenberghe, the Minister-President for the Region of Wallonia, the Austrian Michael Häupl, governor and mayor of Vienna, and the Italian Claudio Martini, the president of Tuscany. Info: Dennis Abbott, CoR in Brussels, +32 2 282 20 99. http://www.cor.eu.int .