Regional leaders and EVP Fitto commit to shape a renewed place-based Cohesion Policy to fight territorial inequalities

During a plenary debate with the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President (EVP) for cohesion and reforms, Raffaele Fitto, regional and local leaders opposed any attempt to centralise the future Cohesion Policy and called for a post-2027 EU budget that enables territories to fight inequalities and address new emergencies.

At the inaugural plenary of the new five-year mandate, members of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) were joined by the EVP Raffaele Fitto to exchange on how to make Cohesion Policy more efficient, while keeping promoting economic convergence and reducing social and territorial disparities.

Call against any centralisation of EU regional funds

Local and regional representatives warned against any temptation to design and manage future EU cohesion funds with a centralised and territorially blind approach. This would prove ineffective in reducing territorial disparities and fail delivering long-term investment in every region. There was a high risk of such an approach leading to the allocation of funds on political basis rather than on regional needs. As underlined by the European Commission in a recently published communication on the road to the next long-term budget, “a strengthened cohesion and growth policy with regions at its centre must be designed and implemented in partnership with national, regional and local authorities.”

EVP Fitto invited regional and local leaders to intensify the common work to reform Cohesion Policy and reassured them insisting on Cohesion Policy’s key principles: partnership, shared management, multi-level governance and place-based approach.

The Commission’s Executive Vice-President and local leaders also discussed the priorities for the upcoming Mid-term review of Cohesion Policy programmes 2021-27. CoR members underlined that regional green and digital transitions should be supported by place-based industrial and energy strategies, to strengthen the resilience and competitiveness of the EU as a whole, as well as its strategic autonomy. 

Quotes

Kata Tüttő, newly elected CoR President and City Councillor of Budapest: “Cohesion Policy is not only the the best antidote to the fragmentation of our territories and societies, but also the guarantee for EU policies to make a difference for people’s life in cities and regions. Cohesion Policy is Europe’s most powerful stabilizing tool— economically, socially, and territorially - and should continue to be designed in partnership with local and regional authorities. If over-centralized or overly controlled it would fail in its purpose to help us navigate global transformations. Cohesion Policy must be flexible, decentralized, and innovative.”

Raffaele Fitto, European Commission’s Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms: “Times are changing, and Cohesion Policy must change with them. Different realities require different approaches and we can succeed only with the direct involvement of the regions. We also need to improve the performance of the policy with stronger governance, accelerated implementation and increased capacity building. Local and regional authorities need to have a say in its design, management and implementation. We have a golden opportunity, in the upcoming mid-term review of the current programmes. This is our chance not just to accelerate implementation, but also to better align with EU priorities. Europe will go forward with a strong cohesion.”

Background

• Video and photos from the debate.  
• On 12 December 2024, in his first public appearances after his entry into office, EVP Fitto attended the annual joint meeting between the CoR’s Commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy and EU Budget (COTER) and the Committee on Regional Development (REGI) of the European Parliament. Press release.
• During the plenary session on 20-21 November, the European Committee of the Regions adopted a package of opinions defining the building blocks of Cohesion Policy after 2027. Press release.
• Cohesion Policy worth nearly € 370 million of EU funds in the current programming period 2021-2027, or one third of the EU long-term budget.

Contacts

Matteo Miglietta
Tel. +32 470895382
Matteo.Miglietta@cor.europa.eu