Dialogue with regions is in the DNA of regional policy
Nicola De Michelis is Deputy Head of cabinet for Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner on Regional Policy. Mr De Michelis – who is an economist – believes cohesion policy should be based on structural actions focusing on the medium and long term and should not be considered as a tool to tackle conjunctural problems caused by the crisis.
Enrico Mayrhofer: The financial crisis first, and then the Greek one, have had and still have a strong political impact on European public opinion. How will these crises impact the upcoming financial programming?
Nicola De Michelis: So far the effects have been more negative than positive.
Because of the crisis, cohesion policy is under pressure. Increasingly, certain actors are pushing for it to become an anti-cyclical short-term tool instead of what it was originally conceived for: structural actions. I have the impression that cohesion policy – that focuses on the medium term and has been able to change Regional economic structures and to modernise production methods – risks evolving toward a tool that focuses more on conjunctural problems and reacts to the shocks of the moment.
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Asturias, a beacon for European maritime policy
Vicente Alberto Álvarez Areces is president of the Principality of Asturias (ES), a Region that encompasses the best conserved and least urbanised coastline in Spain. Within the framework of the European Maritime Day, held in Gijón 18-21 May 2010, Mr Areces stressed "the importance of a European Maritime Strategy for the social and economic progress of the Union" and also reminded that "the Asturias Region was a pioneer in planning and implementing integrated European maritime policies".
Enrico Mayrhofer: What is your view on the conferences that were held in the framework of the European Maritime Day in Gijon? Are you happy with its results and with the participation of the public?
Vicente Alberto Álvarez Areces: We are extremely happy with the results both in terms of the quality of the discussions that were held in Gijon and of the impact that the event had on the city. Hotels were almost fully booked and there were positive repercussions also for the local population thanks to the many activities that were organised in the margins of the workshops and the conferences. At the “Universidad Laboral”, a number of institutional events were held between 19 and 21 May which were attended by more than 2,000 participants, many more than those present at previous events in Brussels and Rome.
Read the entire article "Asturias, a beacon for European maritime policy"
The Regions put territories back at the heart of the TEN-T review
The CPMR would undoubtedly not exist if the Regions which created it in 1973 were completely accessible by sea, by rail and by road. The quality of infrastructure and transport services remains a key element of the competitiveness of our Regions and it must continue to receive the attention of politicians, from local to European level.
The Region I have the honour of being the President of, Aragón, has made it a priority, and is delighted to coordinate the CPMR Inter-Commission Working Group on the Trans-European Transport Network, with the ambition to collectively put the issues of sustainable accessibility back at the heart of European transport policy.
Through the Green Paper and thorough consultations with experts, the European Commission takes great credit for opening a wide consultation before proposing the form that the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) could take tomorrow and beyond. The European Commission wants to completely review the current network, a mere juxtaposition of 30 non-interconnected priority projects, to move towards genuine connections via strategic routes across all European territory.
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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS