Tough is the battle held in Brussels, two weeks before Commission presented the next seven -year budget, with regional funds being one of the conflict fields.
According to a letter sent to the President of the Commission Ursula von der Layenwhich has secured the Politico14 Governments of EU Member States, among them Greececriticizes the budget reform of almost € 400 billion for regional funds.
Ursula von der Layen will present the new budget on July 16th. “No” in the cut of cohesion funds for the poorest regions, except Greece, Italy, Spain and Poland say.
The role of the regions in the new budget
In a simple, one -page letter to the von der Layen, The 14 Member States note that “only a separate and robust budget and a distribution methodology based on regions … will ensure long-term unity, competitiveness and convergence in all EU regions”.
Their position is aligned with the attitude of European commissioners, including the Budget commissioner Sepharafin and the Cohesion commissioner Rafael Filo, who believe that the regions should maintain their strong role.
Many governments, members of European parliament And groups of interests are strongly opposed to the committee’s plan to merge agricultural and regional funds into a single “fund” for each country. It should be noted that agricultural and regional funds are 2/3 of the EU’s 1.2 trillion budget.
What does the Commission say and what do critics answer
The European Commission defends the new system, as it considers it to be more simplified and will allow for better use of European bloc.
For their part, critics of the new system say it will strengthen national governments at the expense of the regions, which traditionally managed local funds.
“I have a bad feeling that behind the smoke of simplification and efficiency there will be a ‘big ugly account’ in the form of a smaller, weaker #eubudget after 2027,” wrote Kata of this, president of her Commission And he expressed concerns that any merger of funds would be indirectly reducing spending.
‘Different levels of regions of development’
In their letter to von der Layen, the 14 Member States note that cohesion policy should “reflect different levels of regions”.
The regional funding program began in the 1970s. Since then, most of the funds had been distributed directly by Brussels to the poorest regions of the EU.
However, fears are increasing that this system will be overthrown and that the national governments, instead of the Commission, will undertake the allocation of funds.
The letter was signed by Greece, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Spain, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia.