Pavel Branda calls on the Commission to do a better job of talking about the success stories of the EU's Cohesion Policy
Speaking on 5 December 2018 at the 132nd plenary session of European Committee of the Regions, CoR Member Pavel Branda Deputy Mayor of Radlo in the Czech Republic) urged Commissioner Creţu to ensure better publicity for the achievements of cohesion Policy.
Mr Branda underlined the need to better communicate the benefits Cohesion Policy had brought to Europe’s regions, cities and rural areas, saying: “I think we need to change the way we communicate the results and impacts of Cohesion Policy. Its great added value is that it reaches the smallest municipalities at the periphery of the Member States and touches the lives of almost every citizen. It is not enough to simply stick an EU flag or a poster on projects. We need to really invest in ways of demonstrating tangible benefits brought about by Cohesion Policy and its impact on people’s lives.”
Cohesion Policy is seen as an essential instrument in promoting economic, social and territorial cohesion and gives the EU visibility in every community. To be effective, it needs solid financial backing and bottom-up design. The ECR Group Members in the CoR are therefore united in opposing any cuts in the policy’s funding under the next EU multiannual financial framework and advocate that decisions on the shape of the policies are made in full partnership with local and regional government.
The Group Members are, however, calling for the reform of the Cohesion Policy so that greater added-value can be achieved with one-third of the EU’s budget currently dedicated to this policy area. The Group has called for a new territorial vision 2050 through the CoR position paper prepared under the leadership of its Vice-President Oldřch Vlasak (Councillor of the City of Hradec Kralove in the Czech Republic). The ECR Group has also called for the EU’s Cohesion Policy to focus more on people-to-people projects in cross-border regions given that approximately one third of EU citizens live in cross-border areas. Currently less than 3% of the EU’s Cohesion Policy targets cross-border areas.