Council of European Municipalities and Regions

LOCAL INSIGHT
Local and regional governments' view
of European affairs

Under the spotlight

EU Budget

Cuts to regional funding: a severe blow for local government

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker unveiled his proposal for the EU’s next long-term budget, the so-called Multiannual Financial Framework, which will run from 2021 to 2027. At stake are drastic cuts in cohesion spending.

Reacting to the Commission's proposal, the President of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR), President of Emilia-Romagna, Stefano Bonaccini, stated: "by cutting cohesion policy by 7%, the Commission is seriously letting down Europe’s towns and regions. Even on the basis of 2018 prices, this will represent a loss of 41 billion EUR for local and regional governments for the 2021-2027 period."

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Interview with...

Waste management

Interview | Why thinking small is the secret to big success

55% of municipal waste to be recycled by 2025: this is one of the objectives set in the new European legislation on waste and the circular economy, adopted by MEPs on 18 April.

CEMR Environment spokesperson and Lincolnshire councillor (LGA), Marianne Overton, analyses how the revision of these 'Waste' directives will impact local governments.

Are you satisfied with the outcome of the negotiations between the Parliament and Member States?

I am delighted that the EU has accepted the points raised by CEMR, notably on the definition of municipal waste, increased transparency and extended responsibility of the producer, encouraging separate collection of waste where possible, action on food waste, energy recovery, and green procurement.

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Interview with...

Cohesion policy

Budget cuts: what consequences for local government?

As the future of cohesion policy is on all EU policymakers’ lips, CEMR’s Executive Director for European Affairs, Angelika Poth-Mögele, gave a video interview to FASI, an Italian media platform specialised in economic and funding information. To read the interview, just jump to the next line.

The EU is currently discussing potential cuts to cohesion policy. How could this affect towns and regions?

If the European Union was to cut the funds for regions, cities and municipalities, it would mean that many of them would not be able to finance regional development projects anymore. Without receiving the money from the European Union, member states will not compensate the losses with national finances, since many of them lack the necessary means or have different priorities.

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