Versterking Europees burgerschap en bewaking buitengrenzen EU op agenda bij Comité van de Regio's (en)
The conditions to ensure that the rights associated to EU citizenship can be fully exercised and the contribution regional and local authorities can make in this perspective will be one of main issues to be discussed at the next Committee of the Regions' commission for Citizenship, Governance, Institutional and External Affairs (CIVEX) to be held in Brussels on Tuesday 24 September. The EU move towards more modern and efficient border management and the promotion of intra-EU mobility for Migrant Researchers, Students, Volunteers and Other Groups also feature on the agenda of the CIVEX meeting.
Coinciding with the European Year of Citizens 2013 in the run-up to the European elections 2014, the European Commission published the 2013 Citizenship Report in May this year putting forward twelve new actions areas to remove obstacles which prevent citizens making the most of EU citizenship. Building up on previous opinions and studies in the field, the draft opinion of the Committee of the Regions (CoR), to be presented by Theodoros Gkotsopoulos (EL/PES), Municipal Councillor of Pallini, Attica, explores the ways local and regional authorities can contribute and facilitate the exercise of the rights of EU citizens, using the European Commission report as a point of reference, but also going beyond it. Whilst insisting on the need to strengthen the social dimension of EU citizenship, the draft opinion calls for measures to be taken to provide education and training on citizenship, to ensure that citizens are able to exercise their rights and obligations in a free and informed way. In this regard it welcomes the European Commission's proposal to use an e-training tool for local authorities to address the lack of knowledge of European citizens' rights at local and regional level.
In the context of the European Commission' "Smart border package" proposal to speed-up, facilitate and reinforce border check procedures for foreigners travelling to the EU, members of the CIVEX commission will also look into the implications of local and regional authorities, in particular as regards cross border cooperation. Discussions will be based on a draft opinion prepared by the CIVEX chair and Mayor of Lisbon, António Costa (PT/PES). The rapporteur expresses his concern at the creation of the Entry/Exit System and the possible implications for fundamental rights, especially in terms of personal data protection, and regrets that the multi-level governance dimension is not taken into sufficient consideration in the EU political debates on the Schengen area.
The meeting will also give the opportunity to Dimitrios Kalogeropoulos (EL/EPP), Municipal Councillor, Aigaleo, Attika, to present his draft opinion on the Commission's proposal aimed at making it easier and more attractive for non-EU national students, researchers and other groups, such as school pupils, trainees, volunteers and au pairs, to enter and stay in the EU for periods exceeding three months. The draft opinion looks into the potential implications of this directive on local communities and regions. It also makes some recommendations for amendments to the proposed directive, in particular to ensure that local and regional authorities are actively involved in promoting the mobility of the groups covered by the proposed directive.
A round table with the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) on the topic: "Working together on fundamental rights: multi-level approaches to combating hate crime in the EU" is also on the agenda. This round table will provide an opportunity to CIVEX members to hear about latest developments at the FRA - its Annual Report 2013 and the new toolkit on joined-up governance - and to engage in a discussion on "Combating hate crime in the EU", which is the subject of the upcoming FRA annual Conference to be held in Vilnius on 12-13 November 2013.
Please see the CIVEX meeting agenda for further details.
The Committee of the Regions' CIVEX commission
The CoR CIVEX commission is responsible for issues including justice and home affairs, fundamental rights, smart regulation and the reduction of administrative burdens, citizenship and broader institutional issues such as governance and devolution. It also deals with the EU external dimension, focusing on neighbourhood and enlargement countries, and decentralised cooperation for development. It gathers 109 regional and local politicians from the 27 EU Member States and is chaired by Antonio Costa (PT/PSE), Mayor of Lisbon.