Committee of the Regions' COTER calls on European Parliament to enforce cohesion policy simplification and payments backlog elimination by 2016

Local leaders of the European Committee of the Regions i (CoR) commission for territorial cohesion and EU Budget (COTER) discussed how to better deliver EU cohesion policy on the ground with Ms Iskra Mihaylova i, Chair of the European Parliament's committee on Regional Development (REGI). Eliminating the current 24,7 bn EUR payment backlog in 2016 and the priorities of the EU annual budget 2016 were debated at the COTER meeting with the EP rapporteur on the Draft EU Budget for 2016, Mr José Manuel Fernandes i.

Delivering new jobs and sustainable growth by making the most out of the 350bn Euro i invested under EU cohesion policy is a crucial challenge for hundreds of European regions and cities. But the task is far from being easy. According to COTER members, the regulation adopted in 2013 helped shift the focus towards results and clear investment priorities but failed in simplifying the programming and management of allocated resources. It is therefore urgent to make new efforts to reduce the administrative burden on beneficiaries, accelerate reimbursement procedures and make the current system of checks and controls more effective and rational. During the debate, REGI chair, Ms Mihaylova agreed with the chair of CoR COTER, Raffaele Cattaneo (IT/EPP), that a close cooperation of the REGI committee and its working group on the implementation of Cohesion policy with regional and local representatives could contribute to ensuring that the needs of those, who are implementing investment programmes on the ground, are duly taken into account.

The debate also highlighted a number of new opportunities linked to EU Cohesion policy 2014-2020, including the chance of increasing the use of financial instruments, which can integrate grants in order to multiply the impact of European Structural and Investment Funds. The potential of blending subsidies and credit facilities is a central aspect of the draft opinion by Adam Struzik (PL/EPP), which was adopted by COTER members during the meeting.

The priorities of the EU annual budget for 2016 were at the heart of the discussion between COTER members and Ms Nadia Calviño, Director-General for Budget of the European Commission. Mr Uno Silberg (EE/EA), CoR rapporteur on the Draft EU Budget for 2016, voiced local leaders' full appreciation for the main proposals made by the Commission: ensuring resources for jobs and growth, including for the European Fund for Strategic Investment, while increasing the EU means to deal with emerging priorities such as migration and safety. COTER members expressed their wholehearted support for the Commission's plan aimed at addressing the current 24,7bn EUR backlog of payments, mainly related to Cohesion policy. The planned elimination of the backlog in 2016 was welcomed as the fulfilment of the basic duty for the EU, to honour its commitments and pay outstanding bills. This priority was shared by the European Parliament's rapporteur on EU budget 2016, Mr José Manuel Fernandes i (PT/EPP), who urged the CoR to support the Parliament's effort to make sure that the European Council respects the agreement reached on the EU Multiannual Financial Framework 2014-2020, which included the commitment to eliminate the accumulated delays in payments.

Additional information:

-Draft opinion: Financial instruments in support of territorial development