The meeting of European regional and local politicians ends today in Brussels. The situation is very high – because it is feared that structurally weak regions will have a much harder time getting EU money in the future.
The reform proposal leaked in media reports is causing a stir. That is understandable, because it would mean a radical new regulation.
The money for regional funding and agricultural aid, which each make up a third of the annual EU budget of around 140 billion euros, will flow into a huge fund from 2028.
From this, a kind of subsidy would then be transferred to the member states to their national budgets, based on the model of the Corona reconstruction fund. However, only when the respective states submit investment plans to Brussels that are based on the political guidelines of the EU Commission.
“Attack on federalism”
Massive criticism of this project comes not only from the Portuguese Vasco Alves Cordeiro. The President of the European Committee of the Regions says: “If these reports from the media are true, we have two big problems: the first is that regions and cities will be sidelined in the future cohesion policy. And that is unacceptable. And secondly, would “The general trust in the future EU cohesion policy will be severely shaken.”
The aim of European cohesion policy is to support poorer regions in the EU in order to catch up with wealthier regions.
Of course, this regional funding needs to be reformed, says NRW’s European State Secretary, Mark Speich. There is a lot of money lying around unused in the funds, for example because bureaucracy is often too big. But if in the future the EU Commission only settles everything with the federal government, for example, this would be an attack on German federalism.
“Regional policy is becoming federal policy. And that is unacceptable,” says Speich. It’s not just the German states that see it that way. “It is seen in exactly the same way in other European regions. Ultimately, it has to be said very clearly, it is the fantasy of technocratic paternalism.” The Commission would thereby gain enormous power.
Be careful not to use the funds for other purposes
With this policy, the EU Commission wants to shirk its responsibility for agricultural and structural support, says Thomas Schmidt. Saxony’s State Minister for Regional Development is convinced that if the Commission’s plans go according to plan, a lot of money that is actually intended to promote equal living conditions across the EU would be used for other purposes in the future.
If Finance Minister Christian Lindner were to plan to use this money to plug holes in the federal budget, this would not be accepted by the German regions and federal states. The approach would lead to major upheavals in the regions and strong antipathy towards the EU, says Schmidt. “We simply cannot afford that politically.”
In view of the massive resistance from European regional politicians, the EU Commission is now trying to downplay the internal presentation of its plans that has become known as a non-binding collection of ideas. There should be clarity about what the Commission actually wants by the middle of next year, when it is due to present its proposal for the next multi-annual EU budget.