march 2011 europe 2020 brief · europe 2020 brief page 4 mr schaefer said that luxembourg's...

tion on the Budget Review run very much along the

same lines. The 2011 Spring European Council should

encourage Member States to draft and implement their

National Reform Programmes for Europe 2020 (to be

submitted in April 2011)

through Territorial Pacts

involving various tiers of

government (see also in

this Europe 2020 Brief a

CoR Bureau Declaration

to the 2011 Spring Euro-

pean Council). We must

make the best possible

use of resources, be-

cause the "EU might

slow down, but other

global actors will not

wait".

Europe 2020 BRIEFMarch 2011

Mercedes BressoPresident of the Committee of the Regions

Mercedes Bresso welcomed par-

ticipants to the 6th Territorial Dia-

logue, the first under the new

Europe 2020 Strategy. She ex-

pressed concern that the eco-

nomic crisis might result in a slow

and jobless economic recovery

undermining social cohesion. In

order to avoid such an outcome and to achieve the

aims of the Europe 2020 Strategy, Member States

should learn from the failure of the Lisbon strategy,

which was due to the fact that local authorities were

not involved in its implementation. Europe 2020 must

provide joint frameworks for policy implementation.

The EU must take the competences of the various

players into account and define the levels at which

each action should be dealt with within a framework of

multi-level governance. The partnership contracts pro-

posed by the European Commission in its Communica-

In 2011, the 6th Territorial Dialogue focused on the Committee of the Regions' proposal of Territorial Pacts at the

country level, as a tool for the national, regional and local authorities to design and implement the National Re-

form Programmes in partnership, working together in an integrated and coordinated manner, also through con-

tractual agreements.

Since 2006, the Territorial Dialogue provides every

year regional and local authorities with an opportu-

nity to engage in a dialogue on the implementation

of the Strategy with top representatives of

the European Council, the Presidency, the Commis-

sion and the European Parliament. This year over

120 representatives of regions and cities partici-

pated in the event.

“Democratic debate is neededat all levels of governance be-cause that is the only way tosecure broad mobilisation ofthe political, economic andterritorial players. We at the

Committee of the Regions areconvinced that Territorial Pactsare a tool that can facilitate thisawareness and commitment.”

6th Territorial Dialogue: Territorial Pacts and the forthcoming Europe 2020 Agenda22 February 2011

6th Territorial Dialogue for Smart, Sustainable & Inclusive Growth

Coming up on the Europe 2020 agenda

CoR Statement to the Spring European Council

President Bresso meeting EU Member States’ Permanent Representatives

Information on Territorial Pacts: Brochure, Webpage

Surveys: ongoing and closed

Studies

How to become a member of the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform

Inside this Brief ...

Pages 1 - 8

Page 4

Page 8

Pages 8 - 9

Page 9

0

Page 11

Page 11

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Mrs Renaud-Basso said that

Europe 2020 differs from the Lis-

bon Strategy in that it is focused

on a limited number of guidelines

and quantitative goals. It should

become the guiding principle for

all actions at European and na-

tional levels. Regional authorities

were not sufficiently involved in the implementation of

the Lisbon Strategy. On the contrary, they should be

partners in the new strategy, because coordination

between different levels of government and social

partners is essential to meet social objectives. Public

expenditure should focus on

Europe 2020 goals while pre-

serving fiscal sustainability.

Ex-ante discussions on draft

budgets are more productive

than their ex-post evaluation.

This is what the European

semester is all about.

Mr Szlaszewski welcomed the strong involvement of

the CoR in the implementation of the Europe 2020

Strategy. Interdependencies between different levels

of governance in the EU create the

need to coordinate efforts and se-

cure mutual commitment. The

Commission shares the opinion

that the implementation of the

new strategy will be successful

only if local and regional authori-

ties are involved. To this end, Ter-

ritorial Pacts could help to improve

economic governance in the EU.

The new multi-annual financial framework will be very

much oriented towards financing the Europe 2020

goals. Whenever possible, Partnership Contracts, as

proposed by the Commission in the EU Budget Review

Communication, should

be based on previously-

adopted Territorial Pacts

setting mutual commit-

ments for national, re-

gional and local levels.

Cohesion policy should

be the main tool for im-

plementing Europe 2020

and this is where the

principles of multi-level

governance come into

play. In this regard, re-

gional and local authori-

ties as well as the private sector should play a key role

in achieving established goals.

“Whenever possible, Partner-

ship Contracts should build onthe Territorial Pacts developedin the context of Europe 2020,in order to reflect the needs andcommitments of partners atnational and regional levels,based on the Common StrategicFramework providing strategic

orientations for all EU fundsconcerned.”

“The new global frame-work for economic gov-ernance, currently underdiscussion, should allowfor better coordinationbetween policy develop-

ments at EU, national,regional and local levels.”

6th Territorial Dialogue: Territorial Pacts and the forthcoming Europe 2020 Agenda

Hubert Szlaszewski

Director, Directorate for Better Regulation and Administrative Policies, Secretariat General, European Commission

Odile Renaud-Basso

Deputy Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Council

Mr Van Nistelrooij expressed a

strong conviction that Europe

needs a new kind of governance to

enhance joint responsibility and

ownership of policies. It was a mis-

take to base the Lisbon Strategy

on "statistics" without proper coor-

dination and its most striking

shortcoming was the lack of ownership at regional

level. The weak point of Europe 2020 is once more its

system of governance which does not ensure effective

policy delivery.

The European Parliament is willing to use its co-decision

powers to make multi-level governance work and thus

enhance the position of the regions. While the content

of the Pacts might be tailored to particular territorial

needs and conditions, the Pacts should not be of a

purely voluntary nature. The entire mechanism of Terri-

torial Pacts, being a link

between what is decided

and what is implemented

in practice, should be

the same and applicable

to everyone.

“The European Parliament will

step in immediately after thepresentation of the new regula-tions for all funds to introducesome legal pointers regardinghow multi-level governanceprinciples should be applied.”

Lambert Van Nistelrooij

EPP-coordinator in the Regional Development Committee, Member of the European Parliament

Europe 2020 BRIEF


Mr Schneider said that the fact that the notion of Terri-

torial Pacts has already been established and widely

used and also that the 6th Territorial Dialogue has it-

self been devoted to this issue, proves the success of

the concept. Territorial Pacts are the right answer to

the shortcomings of the Lisbon Strategy, which failed

to mobilise the potential of the regions: targets cannot

be achieved by being imposed bureaucratically from

above.

Mr Schneider quoted the Council's conclusions on the

Michael Schneider

State Secretary, Delegate of the State of Saxony-Anhalt for the German Federation, CoR member,

rapporteur on the "Contribution of Cohesion Policy to the Europe 2020 Objectives"

Mr Marie commenced his speech by saying that the

economic situation in his departement is very difficult:

the unemployment rate is at 18% and 42 000 people

are on the minimum wage. Within the national frame-

work established in France in 2008, the rescue scheme

of the Territorial Pact for Inclusion (PTI, Pacte Territo-

rial d’Insertion) coordinates actions undertaken to pro-

mote the social and professional integration of benefi-

ciaries of the Active solidarity income (RSA, Revenu de

Solidarité Active). It encourages partnerships in the

Didier Marie

President of the Seine-Maritime General Council, alternate CoR member

Fifth Report on economic, social and territorial cohe-

sion, whereby the Council recalled "that cohesion pol-

icy through its unique multi-level governance structure

is in a position to provide positive incentives and assis-

tance to ensure the ownership of Europe 2020 objec-

tives at local and regional levels". In Germany, the

federal government has submitted its National Reform

Programme to the Länder in order to work out a com-

mon German position. He was very hopeful that the

proposals of the Länder would be included in the final

version of the Programme.

region, also with private partners and helps to identify

strategic priorities and implementation conditions at

local level. This can be seen as a French way of imple-

menting the Territorial Pacts proposed by the CoR.

Each PTI is thereby preceded by an inclusion plan at

departement level ("Plan Départemental d'Insertion")

including all levels of government and private enter-

prises as of the planning phase. Multi-level governance

is important when undertaking concrete territorial ac-

tions in line with EU guidelines.

Markku Markkula

Member of Espoo City Council, CoR member, rapporteur on the Europe 2020 Flagship Initiative

"A digital agenda for Europe"

Mr Markkula started his speech with the statement

that: "Europe's primary goal today must be to get back

on track. The track, however, is not the same as it

used to be". This implies nothing other than the need

of radical transformation of the EU towards a green,

knowledge-based society.

To achieve this goal, Europe needs multi-level govern-

ance approaches, contractual commitments and pio-

neering regions. Improved regional competitiveness –

namely, the knowledge-based competitiveness of in-

habitants as well as companies and public sector pre-

sent in the region – is a key goal. Territorial Pacts

should be "natural components within the National Re-

form Programme", a concrete mechanism within the

Member States' internal policy structure, aimed at en-

suring the commitment of public authorities at all lev-

els.

To this end, each region should elaborate its own, tai-

lor-made Territorial Pact, which would allow it to find

its niche and its areas for strategic collaboration within

the EU and the globalised world. Espoo is undertaking

pioneering activities, such as successful cooperation

between citizen, public authorities and private actors,

and managing to deliver better services in a period of

shrinking budgets.

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Mr Schaefer said that Luxembourg's greatest challenges

within the educational sector concern the need to deal

with multilingualism (French, German and English) and

a high school drop-out rate. Among the measures

Marc Schaefer

Member of the Vianden municipal council, CoR member and rapporteur on the Europe 2020 Flagship Initiative

"Youth on the Move"


taken, the introduction of late graduation has led to a

13% reduction in the drop-out rate. The scheme was

offered to pupils not having obtained any degree after

the normal period of schooling.

Mr Errani said that Europe 2020 is "fundamental for

relaunching Europe". This is not without its difficulties,

especially when it comes to combining territorial policy

and cohesion policy. Territorial Pacts could play an im-

portant role in bringing these policies together, where

the Lisbon Strategy failed. Several crucial measures

have allowed Emilia-Romagna to achieve significant

results. One of them has been an effective strategic

investments scheme cutting across sectoral and terri-

Vasco Errani

President of Emilia-Romagna, Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform member

torial policies, based on multi-level negotiations includ-

ing different levels of government as well as private

sector stakeholders. Its effectiveness rested primarily

on the political will of regional leaders to act and im-

plement negotiated solutions based on the smart coor-

dination of different policies.

He argued that cohesion policy should support not only

economically weak regions but also strong regions, as

they are the spearheads of innovation.

On 24 and 25 March 2011, the Spring European Council will assess progress made in imple-

menting the Strategy at EU and national levels. This year, it will issue guidance on the Europe2020 National Reform Programmes (NRPs), due for submission by mid April. The NRPs willset out the member countries' national headline targets and the measures they plan to imple-ment the strategy's flagship initiatives and tackle bottlenecks to structural reforms at nationallevel.

In June 2011, the European Commission will draft country-specific recommendations to EU

Member States, for adoption by the European Council.

These two milestones take place within the new economic governance mechanism provided by

the European semester, in which macroeconomic and fiscal policies will be reviewed under theStability and Growth Pact.

The forthcoming Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union has asked the

Committee of the Regions to adopt an outlook opinion on “The role of local and regional au-thorities in achieving the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy”. The opinion will beadopted in the second half of 2011 and its rapporteur is Mr Markku Markkula (FI/EPP).

The Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform's (MP) annual workshop will take place before sum-

mer 2011, with the following objectives: presenting the platform's role and rolling programmeand encouraging members' participation in its work; launching the nomination of thematic ex-perts by MP members to help monitor how the flagship initiatives are being implemented on theground; and promoting membership of the Platform.

Following submission of the NRPs, the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform will launch surveys to

ascertain whether Europe 2020 is being drafted and implemented in partnership between all tiersof government and to assess progress on the CoR's Territorial Pact proposal. The results from thesurveys will feed into the Second CoR Monitoring Report on Europe 2020, to be published inDecember 2011.

Coming up on the agenda of Europe 2020 and the Committee of the Regions

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Mr Valcárcel Siso opened the af-

ternoon session by drawing atten-

tion to the fact that Europe 2020

was not only a long-term growth

Strategy but also a framework for

the recovery of the EU economy.

He said it was disappointing that

local and regional authorities

seemed to have limited knowledge of the European

Economic Recovery Plan and that its impact was seen

as rather limited so far. Yet the Structural Funds made

a significant contribution to national and regional anti-

crisis measures.

Two elements were crucial: timely involvement of the

regions and cities in domestic recovery plans and co-

operation between local and regional authorities and

the private sector. He said

that a new survey was

being launched: "Anti-

crisis policies in regions

and cities two years on:

Public authorities working

in partnership" (see a later

section in this brief for

more details).

Mr Andor pointed out that the

impact of the economic crisis dif-

fered among Member States and

their regions, and that the crisis

also proved that European econo-

mies were highly inter-dependent.

It is time to create the conditions

required for sustainable recovery,

by pursuing the Europe 2020 goals. To meet these

objectives, it is essential to ensure that people have

the right skills. Jobs in the future are likely to require

higher levels of knowledge and skills.

The Europe 2020 flagship initiatives "Agenda for New

Skills and Jobs" and "Youth on the Move", together

with the European Social Fund, are the main EU tools

to assist Member States in developing a skilled work-

force. Mr Andor underlined the urgent need for coop-

eration between public authorities at different levels

and said that Territorial Pacts were a valuable instru-

ment for helping regional and local authorities to play

a key role in delivering on Europe 2020 targets. EU

cohesion policy must also be

used fully and efficiently as

a tool to implement the new

Strategy. He finished by

saying that while the neces-

sary fiscal consolidation

makes it more difficult to

mobilize the necessary pub-

lic resources, it was essen-

tial to look for new ways

how to leverage private

funds in support of public

policy objectives.

6th Territorial Dialogue: EU cities and regions recovering from the Economic Crisis

“The imbalances betweenand within European re-gions are exacerbated by thevarying impact of the crisisand in many territories a

jobless recovery does notbring relief to EU citizens.”

“To achieve our goals ofsmart, sustainable andinclusive growth we needa successful partnershipbetween European, na-tional, regional and localinstitutions and a frame-

work to ensure publicresources are invested atvarious level of govern-ment in a more consistentway.”

Mr van Iersel argued that metro-

politan areas, as centres of eco-

nomic dynamics, are of para-

mount importance for Europe's

economic recovery, and also be-

cause of their capability to suc-

cessfully mobilise civil society.

He said that metropolitan areas were natural socio-

economic spaces with a “critical mass” of at least half

a million inhabitants. He pointed to "urban renais-

sance" as a new trend and called for metropolitan ar-

eas to become spearheads of innovation. In order to

achieve this goal, metropolitan areas should develop

their own holistic Europe 2020 Agenda which should

contain the following key components: a strong indus-

trial base, better and simplified regional and local

regulations, schooling and

training at all levels, effec-

tive employment policies

and regional social dia-

logues, improved research

capacities and science

parks, economic clusters,

virtual and physical infra-

structure. The commitment

of national governments, direct commitment from the

Commission, financial support at the EU level, as well

as the interest of private investors, would all be crucial

in making these Agendas a success.

“All cities have their owntraditions and identities,their strengths and weak-nesses: the EU is very well-placed to play an active rolein developing future-oriented cities.”

Ramón Luis Valcárcel Siso

CoR first vice-president

László Andor

European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion

Joost P. van Iersel

President of the Steering Committee Europe 2020 of the European Economic and Social Committee

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Nicola Beer described how Hesse, one of Germany's

economically strongest Länder, counteracted the ef-

fects of the crisis. Federal funds to finance short-time

work, as well as a Land's special investment program

of 1.7 billion Euros, helped to keep the unemployment

rate low and to strengthen the construction sector.

The region adjusted its investment programmes to

renovation measures of school and university buildings

and other public facilities. By 2010, many investment

programmes have been carried out in the region,

mainly aimed at stimulating the economy through fi-

nancing of SMEs and investments in other infrastruc-

ture projects. Now it is time to take a look at budget

concerns and to consolidate Hesse`s finances with the

aim to gain confidence of private households and to

boost private consumption.


Mr van Gijzel reported that Eindhoven experienced a

serious economic crisis already in the 90s. At that

time, public, private and knowledge sectors put their

heads together and set up a stimulation fund.

Drawing upon lessons learnt from that period and the

measures introduced by the local authority, Eindhoven

managed to withstand the recent crisis without a ma-

jor economic decrease. In particular, the city – coop-

erating with the national government, the private sec-

tor and academia – introduced a number of job market

measures, known as part-time unemployment facility

and measures to prevent highly educated knowledge

workers from losing their jobs and leaving the region.

As the crisis is not over yet, more investment in edu-

cation and research is needed to withstand competi-

tion with Asian economies. Eindhoven addresses these

challenges in its programme "Brainport 2020: Top

Economy, Smart Society" which aim is to make by

2020 Southeast Netherlands the Top 3 of Europe's top

technology regions.

Nicola Beer

State Secretary for European Affairs, Ministry of Hesse for Justice, Integration & European Affairs, CoR member

Rob van Gijzel

Mayor of Eindhoven, Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform member

Mrs Hannify said that the economic crisis posed an

unprecedented challenge for Ireland in all spheres of

life: Ireland's real GDP has fallen by 11% in 3 years,

the unemployment rate has risen from 4 to 11%, net-

emigration has reappeared again after years of net-

immigration, and the property market has undergone

a deep recession with over 3000 unfinished properties

scattered across Ireland. It is mainly local and regional

authorities who have to deal with the aftermath of the

crisis. In this regard, a 4 year recovery plan has been

launched by the authorities, focused on restoring

credit availability, reforming the labour market, invest-

ing in innovation, reducing the regulatory burden for

businesses, and creating a pro-enterprise environ-

ment. Mrs Hanniffy saw the crisis as a turning point

for the Irish economy and Ireland as a whole.

Constance Hanniffy

Member of the Offaly County Council and Midland Regional Authority, member of the Border Midland and West

Assembly, CoR member, Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform member

All materials

(agenda, presentations, speeches)

from the 6th Territorial Dialogue

are available at

www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Mr Silberg gave a rather gloomy description of the

socio-economic situation in his country. He said that in

2009 average income had decreased for the first time

during the last decade in Estonia and that the number

of younger people aged 16 to 24 living in poverty had

increased to 20%. However, he said that the situation

slightly improved in 2010 and Estonia GDP grew by

3.1% compared to the previous year.

Mr Silberg identified the National Reform Programme

"Estonia 2020" as a possible solution to the current

problems. The programme is being developed, in close

cooperation with Estonian local and regional authori-

ties. He called on the national government to provide

the local and regional authorities with sufficient finan-

cial means to combat the crisis. EU funds should con-

tinue to be accessible in a more simple and flexible

way. Mr Silberg concluded his speech by saying that

local and regional authorities should not pay the price

for the crisis.

Mr Kasprzyk welcomed the fact that the Committee of

the Regions was so involved in the new Strategy,

through its Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform. He pre-

sented Poland as an example of the effective manage-

ment of structural funds and efficient spending aligned

with EU guidelines. In this area, the Polish Presidency

of the EU has three priorities: increasing the political

importance of cohesion policy, taking an integrated

approach to development by combining the goals of

Europe 2020 with cohesion policy, and successfully

negotiating the EU's new multi-annual financial frame-

work. There is a need for all sectoral policies to have a

regional focus, based on a genuine bottom-up ap-

proach. To this end, regional programming and Terri-

torial Pacts, as proposed by the Committee of the Re-

gions, could be relevant tools.

Poland has recently introduced the concept of territo-

rial contracts to set regional development goals and

priorities into a framework agreed between the na-

tional and regional levels. This approach is currently

being tested by a few Polish regions and the aim is for

it to be fully implemented by 2013. Mr Kasprzyk's

final point was that cohesion policy should help each

region to find the best way to build on its own

strengths.


Uno Silberg

Member of Kose Rural Municipality Council, CoR member

Krzysztof Kasprzyk

Counsellor for Regional and Cohesion Policy, Permanent Representation of the Republic of Poland to the European

Union and Representative of the forthcoming Polish Presidency

6th Territorial Dialogue: Speakers' discussion with the CoR and Platform members

covering several possible sectors (transport, the envi-

ronment, energy, third-level education, territorial

planning, agriculture and fisheries, industry, employ-

ment, culture, health, sport, tourism).

The need to go beyond the GDP indicator was also

raised, in order to cover the different goals of the

Europe 2020 Strategy and to better respond to the

diversity of territories at local level. The participants

shared the view that pacts in the sector of employ-

ment and social inclusion could be a useful tool for

achieving smart specialisation and equipping workers

with the requisite skills. Europe 2020 would succeed if

its targets were set not only at European and national

levels, but also at regional and local levels, and if the

potential for cross-border cooperation (e.g. in the con-

text of the single market) was taken into account. Ref-

erence was made to the need for the recovery plans to

include environmental and social aspects, to achieve

sustainable development based on clean energy and

environmental-friendly infrastructure. It was noted

During the 'dialogue time' sessions, local and regional

politicians from the audience, along with leaders of

associations representing EU cities and regions, gave

their views on what the Europe 2020 Strategy should

focus on and how to achieve the desired results.

They stressed that Europe 2020 would be successful if

local and regional authorities (LRAs) got involved and

cohesion policy came into play. They supported the

view that cooperation between different levels of gov-

ernment was needed to achieve better, tangible re-

sults at local level, welcoming the CoR proposal on

Territorial Pacts for Europe 2020. Some participants

(e.g. from Hungary) presented their home country's

experience in developing National Reform Pro-

grammes. In France, the project contracts concluded

between the State and the various regions (contrats

de projets état-région) are part of the legal frame-

work: they are in fact pacts under which the state and

the region commit themselves to ensuring multi-

annual funding for territorial development projects

Europe 2020 BRIEF

6th Territorial Dialogue: Speakers' discussion with the CoR and Platform members

effective. Coordination of efforts brings results if poli-

cymakers focus on fewer actions, and territorial pacts

could serve this purpose.

Besides the panellists, the following participants took

the floor: István Sértő-Radics, CoR member, Mayor of

Uszka (Hungary); Rolf Harlinghausen, CoR member

from Hamburg (Germany); Rudolf C. Louwers from

INTERREG IV for North-Western Europe; Javier

Velasco Mancebo, CoR alternate member from As-

turias (Spain).

that Territorial Pacts for Europe 2020 be established in

all countries between the different tiers of govern-

ment. Not only would Territorial Pacts allow Europe

2020 the flexibility to cope with each country's starting

points and experiences, they would also provide an

opportunity to test in advance some new proposals

that are being put forward by the European Commis-

sion in view of the next multi-annual financial frame-

work. Two of these proposals are supported by the

Committee of the Regions: a common strategic frame-

work to coordinate and focus the use of the structural

funds as well as other EU policy instruments, and in-

vestment and development partnership contracts be-

tween Member States and the Commission. This is

why the Committee views the next Spring European

Council as a key opportunity to press ahead with

Europe 2020. After Ms Bresso's address, Peter

Györkös, permanent representative of Hungary to the

In a packed meeting room with Member States' per-

manent representatives to the EU and the heads of

the National Delegations at the Committee of the Re-

gions, CoR President Mercedes Bresso explained that

the meeting has been convened in preparation for the

forthcoming Spring European Council, which will pro-

vide Member States with the final set of political

guidelines before they are due to submit their Europe

2020 National Reform Programmes by mid April 2011.

The time available before the April deadline should be

used to ensure that Europe 2020 is put on the right

track, avoiding the mistakes that have affected the

Lisbon Strategy in the past decade. Such mistakes

might still occur. In fact, until now, local and regional

authorities seem to have been barely involved at all in

preparations for the National Reform Programmes.

To address this problem, the Committee has proposed

President Bresso meets the EU Member States' permanent representatives to the

European Union to discuss Europe 2020 - 8 March 2011

On the eve of the European Council meeting (24/25

March) and following the 6th Territorial Dialogue (22

February), the Committee of the Regions Bureau has

issued a Declaration to the European Council on a bet-

ter implementation of Europe 2020. It insists on

"including a requirement for multi-level partnership

between central, regional and local governments in

order to ensure an increased ownership over the

Europe 2020 Strategy". In this context it asks that

"National Reform Programmes are designed and imple-

mented in partnership with all tiers of government, and

make clear reference to the establishment of Territorial

Pacts for Europe 2020 to be subscribed in each mem-

ber country in accordance with the national legal

framework".

When it comes to monitoring activities, the Declaration

recalls that the CoR will "keep monitoring the impact

on the territories of the crisis and of EU and national

recovery policies" and it will publish next December the

second Monitoring Report on Europe 2020 tracking the

Strategy's implementation on the ground.

CoR Statement to the 2011 Spring European Council - 4 March 2011

that sophisticated research centres of excellence did

not always translate ideas into innovation; hence there

should be more focus on SMEs and their innovation

capacities also in terms of private funding. The point

was also made that cities and regions needed to per-

form better as spearheads for innovation – which

should be understood as more than just research.

There was a unanimous view that the Strategy would

deliver only if it built on each region's existing assets.

The closer to the regional and local levels, the more

policy choices would reflect underlying needs and be

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Getting to know the Territorial Pacts for

Europe 2020 - Brochure

On the occasion of the Sixth Territorial Dialogue on 22

February 2011, the CoR published a brochure - Terri-

torial Pacts: Making the Most of Europe 2020

through Partnership - FAQs on the proposal for

Territorial Pacts to achieve the objectives of the

Europe 2020 Strategy.

The brochure – available in all languages at

www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020 – provides an over-

view of the concept of Territorial Pacts for Europe

2020, defined as “an agreement between a country’s

tiers of government (local, regional, national)”, com-

mitted to coordinate and synchronise their policy

agendas in order to focus their actions and financial

resources on the Europe 2020 Strategy goals and tar-

gets. Well aware that there is no one-size-fits-all rec-

ipe, Territorial Pacts should give the territorial dimen-

sion of the Europe 2020 strategy, reflecting the local

conditions, needs and starting points.

Territorial Pacts for Europe 2020:

Monitoring and learning from experience

Webpage

With the aim of collecting and disseminating Territorial

Pacts for Europe 2020, the CoR, through its Monitoring

Platform Europe 2020, has created a special webpage

devoted to this topic.

The webpage contains ongoing cases of Europe 2020-

related Territorial Pacts and a section with useful

documents.

To share knowledge about the Territorial Pacts, local

and regional authorities are requested to fill in the

form available on the webpage and send it to the e-

mail address [email protected]

www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020

Delegations from Poland, Germany, Lithuania, the

Czech Republic, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Italy, the

Netherlands, Romania, the United Kingdom, France

and Finland.

The debate showed a wide consensus on the need to

make the most of Europe 2020 and on the relevance

of the proposal to establish Territorial Pacts. Several

examples were given of past and present experiences

based on approaches which are very much in line with

the concept of the Territorial Pact.

EU, gave his opening speech highlighting the chal-

lenges which the ongoing rotating Presidency of the

Council is facing in the first European Semester, espe-

cially in the fields of reforming economic governance

and financial regulations.

In the lively debate that followed, the permanent rep-

resentatives of Poland, Germany, Ireland, Sweden and

Romania took the floor, as well as a representative of

the permanent representation of Italy. Statements

were also made by the heads of the CoR National

President Bresso meets the EU Member States' permanent representatives to the

European Union to discuss Europe 2020 - 8 March 2011

Territorial Pacts

Europe 2020 BRIEF

Anti-Crisis Policies in Regions & Cities

Two Years On: public authorities working in

partnership

The aim of this survey is to review the socio-economic

situation in the EU's regions and cities during the crisis

and to provide a further assessment by local and re-

gional authorities of the anti-crisis measures adopted

with the assistance of the European Union. This sur-

vey is a follow-up to the first survey on this topic:

"The European Economic Recovery Plan in Regions

and Cities: One Year On" conducted at the end of

2009 (results available on the Europe 2020 Monitoring

Platform website).

The results of this survey will be used as a basis for

contributions to the debate on the need for anti-crisis

measures, better spending of EU, national, regional

and local financial resources, and on the effectiveness

of Europe 2020 as an exit strategy. Last but not least

they will give a snapshot of the current situation in

regions and cities on the eve of the discussion on the

Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020.

Running until 4

April 2011, the

survey is open to

local and regional

authorities from

the EU member

states.

To participate in the survey, please visit:

http://portal.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/Surveys/

Pages/AntiCrisisPoliciesinRegionsCities.aspx

Consultation on the upcoming

Second European Agenda on Integration

The CoR has been asked by the European Commission

(DG HOME) to contribute to a consultation on the up-

coming Second European Agenda on Integration,

expected to be published later in 2011. Running until

31 March 2011, the consultation is open to local and

regional authorities from the EU member states.

This Second European Agenda for Integration confirm

the Member States' commitment to further develop

the core idea of integrating third country nationals

legally residing in the European Union as a driving

force for development and social cohesion.

The Committee of the

Regions believes that

successfully implement-

ing all integration initia-

tives depends on an

effective partnership

between all the stake-

holders concerned in a

genuine multi-level-

governance approach. It has therefore been asked by

the European Commission to coordinate input from

public authorities at the local and regional level in the

consultation on the Second European Agenda for Inte-

gration.

To take a part in this consultation, please visit:

http://portal.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/news/Pages/

SecondEuropeanAgendaonIntegration.aspx

Recently closed surveys

The Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform recently final-

ised its two surveys: "European Platform against

Poverty and Social Exclusion" and "The role of

regional and local authorities in promoting a

sustainable water policy".

Both of them attracted more than 40 contributions

each. The results of the surveys were presented to the

Rapporteurs in view of their ongoing work on the re-

spective opinions. Christine Chapman's opinion on the

social Flagship Initiative will be adopted in March 2011

while Nichi Vendola's outlook opinion, requested by

the Hungarian Presidency, is scheduled to be adopted

in June 2011.

We thank very much all contributors - your ideas, sug-

gestions and good practices will feed into the 2nd CoR

Monitoring Report on Europe 2020 (to be published in

December 2011).

Ongoing Surveys

Europe 2020 BRIEF

What is the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform?

The Europe 2020 MP is a CoR-managed network of around 150 local and regional authorities from all EU Member

States networking on growth and jobs and contributing to the EU debate on Europe 2020.

Who can become a member of the EUROPE2020MP?

Any EU local and regional authority can be a member of the Europe 2020 MP.

What does the EU2020MP offer its members?

The EUROPE2020MP:

carries out surveys and consultations of EU local and regional authorities on priority Europe 2020 policy is-

sues, whose outcomes feed into CoR Opinions;

since 2006, organises the annual Territorial Dialogue, where political representatives of its member authori-

ties discuss the outcomes of the Platform's monitoring activity with representatives of the European Com-

mission and the Council Presidency;

organises workshops to discuss policy issues related to Europe 2020 implementation and monitoring;

throughout Website and electronic newsletters, provides systematic updates and basic documents on

Europe 2020 design and implementation and on the Platform's activity and planned events, etc.

What does Europe 2020 MP request of its members?

Whenever possible, members of the EUROPE2020MP are requested to:

participate in surveys and consultations,

participate in the Territorial Dialogue and other meetings and events,

participate in other possible thematic activities (e.g., virtual working groups, targeted surveys/consul-

tations), exchange experiences and good practices and help with CoR consultative work,

inform the Europe 2020 MP team in good time about any change regarding the administration's political

representative and contact person.

Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform

Become a Member of Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform

To become a Member of the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform please fill in the application form available here:

www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/Knowledge/Pages/BecomeaMember.aspx

Become a Member

Studies

After Lisbon, the role of regional and local authorities in a new strategy for sustainable growth

and better jobs - Local sustainable energy strategies: opportunities and challenges

This study investigates how regional and local authorities contribute to the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strat-egy, using efforts to promote sustainable energy and climate mitigation as examples. It analyses experiencesand best practices of local and regional authorities in transforming their energy systems, thereby contributingsignificantly to the implementation of the EU 20/20/20 targets. It also proposes a set of recommendations forfuture improvements to the framework in which municipalities operate.

After Lisbon, the role of regional and local authorities in a new strategy for sustainable growth

and better jobs - 60 interviews with politicians from the Lisbon Monitoring Platform

The specific objective of this study was to provide the Committee of the Regions (CoR) with a document summa-

rizing a series of interviews with 60 local and regional stakeholders from across the EU27 on their experiences in

adopting the Lisbon Strategy; possible inconsistencies with their priorities; the local and regional policy tools best

suited to pursue the Strategy; the benefits of adopting a multi-level governance approach, as well as their expec-

tations regarding the CoR’s post-Lisbon activities.

To access these studies, please visit "Library" on : www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020

march 2011 europe 2020 brief · europe 2020 brief page 4 mr schaefer said that luxembourg's...

Documents