Social cohesion is EU's greatest challenge for post-COVID recovery, says Vasco Cordeiro
The President of the Government participated today, by video conference, in the meeting of the Bureau of the Committee of the Regions. The event was attended by the permanent representatives of Germany, Portugal and Slovenia to the European Union, which make up the "trio" of Member States that will chair the European Council for the next 18 months.
At this meeting, the three representatives presented the Presidency of the Council programme for the period between July 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021. This is a decisive period for the claims of regions, taking into account the decisions that will be taken on the next financial programming period for 2021-2027 and the future of Common Agricultural and Cohesion Policies.
According to Vasco Cordeiro, who is also the First Vice-President of the Committee of the Regions, this "trio" will take on these duties at a crucial time for the European project, considering the need to not only reach an agreement on the next Community budget but also to provide swift responses to Europe's economic recovery.
"The budget should fulfil our daily ambitions and needs and should be decentralised" in the response to the challenges of Member States and Regions, through a renewed Cohesion Policy focused on territorial, social and economic cohesion," the President Government stressed, noting the Commission's proposal represents “a good step in the right direction.”
In his speech, Vasco Cordeiro also pointed out the need for the European Union to take into consideration the social dimension of recovery, given the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, he defended that regions should have a political role to play at the Conference on the Future of Europe, an initiative launched by the European Commission.
The Presidency of the Council is held on a rotating basis by EU Member States for six-month periods.
The Member States holding the Presidency work in close cooperation in groups of three, designated as "trios," a system established by the Lisbon Treaty in 2009.
The "trio" stipulates targets to be achieved in the long term and prepares a common agenda that sets out the themes and main issues that the Council will address over an 18-month period.
Based on this programme, each of the three countries prepares its own detailed version of the six-month programme.
This meeting of the Bureau of the Committee of the Regions took place on the eve of its plenary session, which will be attended by 350 representatives of regions and cities from all Member States of the European Union. The event will take place by video conference over the next three days.