Jarosław Stawiarski appointed CoR rapporteur on the European Year of Rail ECR member, Jarosław Stawiarski who is the President of the Lubelskie region in Poland was appointed the European Committee of the Regions' rapporteur by the Commission on the Territorial Cohesion Policy and the EU budget (COTER) for the upcoming opinion on European Year of the Rail (2021).

The European Commission has previously proposed to make 2021 the “Year of Rail" to help reach some of the environmental goals set by the European Green Deal. The goals of the European Year of Rail aim to accelerate a modal shift from road-based freight and transit to an increased reliance on rail. The hope is to underline both the economic and ecological benefits of increased rail usage for both passengers and freight forwarders while also identifying the obstacles to achieving a “Single European Rail Area". Furthermore, the creation of a greater framework for social and political awareness that could also enable a more optimised use of a larger potential rail sector would be fruitful. ECR rapporteur Dr Pavel Branda 9 Earlier in the year, the COTER secretariat proposed drawing up this opinion as a response to this “Year of Rail" referral from the Commission. With this objective in mind, it was determined by the COTER commission that Mr Jarosław Stawiarski was the best fit candidate to exercise the CoR's influence in this area as a rapporteur for the opinion.

This opinion would also enable Mr. Stawiarski to further showcase the CoR's existing work in cohesion policy and support of infrastructure but would also outline envisaged follow-up actions in the domain of rail policy. Not only due to his extensive governing experience, but also his credentials as a policy maker – especially as it relates to cohesion policy and infrastructure – Mr Stawiarski accepted the position of rapporteur on this opinion. High quality transport links to facilitate better inter-European trade and commerce have always been of high priority for the ECR Group. These rail networks help alleviate economic disparities between Member States and regions, by increasing transit efficiency and creating jobs. This is particularly true in the eastern part of the European Union, and increased rail function there can further the goals of European cohesion policy moreover. Mr Stawiarski will ensure that local and regional authorities will have their interests protected while also representing the interests of Europe's east where increased rail efficiency is a necessary catalyst for economic growth. Within the context of the European “Year of Rail", there will be an increase in both awareness and public engagement. There will be a workshop regarding this initiative during the European Week of Regions and Cities that will take place in Brussels from 12-15 October. This will be one of several public outreach programmes and workshops to draw attention to this project and Mr Stawiarski's work as rapporteur.