Brussels, 20/09/2005 (Agence Europe) - In a recent letter to Jean-Marie Beaupuy (ALDE, France), Chairman of the URBAN-Housing Intergroup at the European Parliament, the Commissioner for Regional Policy, Danuta Hübner, confirms her resolve to ensure that urban areas fully play their role in the pursuit of growth and employment. (See EUROPE 9028).
Referring to the Beaupuy report that urges for a new partnership between the EU and the towns and cities of Europe, Ms Hübner points out to Mr Beaupuy that she has called on the Directorate General for Regional Policy at the European Commission to prepare a communication on the urban dimension of the strategic guidelines for cohesion policy. The Commissioner writes that the work will cover the most relevant aspects of urban development and place emphasis on actions to be initiated in the context of cohesion policy. “We consider the work will be very useful for the Member States and the towns in their preparation of operational programmes for the period 2007-2013. Our aim is to share the results of this work with the Member States and with MEPs at the Informal Council of 6 and 7 December in Bristol”, Ms Hübner writes. She goes on to indicate that Mr Beaupuy's suggestion to create a task-force on urban issues at the European Commission will be carefully considered in the light of the results of the work and after the current negotiations on the legislative framework for cohesion policy 2007-2013.