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Shaping the future of European Territorial Cooperation - Position Paper
15.07.2010
Preparations for the next EU budgetary period 2014-2020 have begun and decision-makers have made clear that programme input is needed and desired in this process.
The main strategic processes for the future of the EU are evolving around the Europe 2020 strategy (http://ec.europa.eu/eu2020/), which has been agreed by Heads of State in June. The main consultation activities on the new policy framework are taking place now. In autumn several additional policy documents containing a more detailed outline of the EU 2020 process will be released by the Commission’s Directorates General. It is currently envisaged that the new legislative package will be submitted to the European Council in spring 2011.
Contribution by ETC practitioners
In autumn 2009 INTERACT developed a platform for involving European Territorial Cooperation programmes in the future discussion to ensure that the new framework respects and effectively addresses the unique situation of ETC programmes. During spring two expert working group meetings were held with the aim of setting the background for a wider discussion. These workshops addressed the future strategic and thematic framework for European Territorial Cooperation, as well as programme management and control issues.
The main points raised during the workshops were summarised in a discussion paper which was distributed to ETC programmes and made available on the INTERACT website. To validate the provisional conclusions and proposals, as well as to obtain wider feedback and further inputs from practitioners, a consultation event was organised in Brussels on 1-2 June 2010.
INTERACT stakeholders also had a possibility to provide written contributions. These were received from Malta and Barcelona Provincial Council (Spain).
The approach taken in the consultation process followed the guidance for debate raised by the European Commission:
- improving the way regional and local resources from all territories are used, so that they contribute to the competitiveness of the whole of Europe
- focusing the policy more on results
- continue simplifying the process used to implement the policy while at the same time ensuring it remains effective
- focusing the policy towards the future and helping regions deal with future challenges
As far as possible the discussion was focused on solutions as the main challenges have been quite clear and generally accepted and most needed are concrete proposals for how to address them.
The outcome of the consultation process is summarised in the Position Paper, made public by INTERACT and forwarded to the European Commission.
INTERACT Position Paper | ETC beyond 2013 | 07.2010
PDF Document, 78.5 KB
The outcomes of the consultation on the future of ETC, organised by INTERACT during the first semester 2010, are summarised in this position paper, which has been forwarded to the European Commission.
