Brussels, 24/11/2005 (Agence Europe) - Following an exchange of views between the representatives of local authority associations and President Barroso on 17 November as part of the structured dialogue, the President of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and member of the executive committee of Eurocities Michael Häupl welcomed the fact that the Commission declares in its work programme that the EU can only achieve its objectives with the participation of national, regional and local authorities. Municipalities and regions face challenges such as the creation of jobs and growth, Mr Häupl notes in a communication, deploring the “lack of coordination between the acting levels” which “explains why the biggest problem in achieving the Lisbon goals is the deficiency of implementation”. Mr Häupl also asks why the work programme on the ageing population, the management of immigration and climate change is limited to national and international actors. He also explains the concern of cities faced with the restrictions imposed on cooperation between municipalities and their freedom to choose how they provide public services. President Barroso responded by announcing that there will be a Commission white paper within weeks on the state of play in the consultation process.