Vasco Cordeiro urges European Commission to debate what "really matters to people"
The President of the Government challenged the European Commission not to lessen the Cohesion Policy, warning of the double penalty imposed on regions such as the Azores in the proposal presented for the Multiannual Financial Framework for the 2021-2027 period.
"We are particularly concerned about the proposed double penalty for the Cohesion Policy by both reducing its budget and by drastically reducing its co-financing rates in our regions from 85% to 70%," said Vasco Cordeiro.
The President of the Government spoke in Las Palmas on the Canary Islands at the Partnership Session of the 23rd Conference of Presidents of the Outermost Region. The event was attended by King Philip VI of Spain, the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Cretu, as well as by representatives of the Governments of Portugal, Spain and France and the European Parliament.
Vasco Cordeiro stated that the proposal for Community Budget presented by the Juncker Commission "doubles the efforts imposed on regions such as the Azores which, through its direct action, contribute to achieving economic, social and territorial cohesion that still remains fundamental."
"We are also concerned that a tool designed to meet the specific needs of ORs in a key sector is commended one day and the continuity and maintenance of its resources is assured, but, on the third day, its budget is significantly reduced. I am talking about POSEI and its impact on farmers' lives," stressed the President of the Government.
On the second day of the conference that brings together the Presidents of the Governments of the nine ORs, Vasco Cordeiro also stated that it is everyone's responsibility in this process to go beyond a merely recognising the importance of these regions to the European Union.
"For this reason, it is not possible to pretend that we are not concerned about some of the Commission's proposals for the next Multiannual Financial Framework in a budget defined as "pragmatic and modern." Indeed, we are concerned with the growing centralisation and increasing distance between the European centre and its citizens," said the President of the Government.
In his speech, Vasco Cordeiro warned that, for the first time in the history of European integration, the financial allocations for programmes managed directly by Brussels are greater than the financial allocations to the Cohesion and Common Agricultural policies.
Recognising the need for Europe to foster new policies, such as Knowledge, Innovation, Technology, Mobility and Youth Exchange, Security and Defence and Migrations, the President of the Government rejected that there is a division between old and new policies.
"The question is with whom should Europe implement them," said Vasco Cordeiro. As he emphasised, the real question is whether these policies will enable a covert and illegitimate centralisation regarding the distribution of powers and responsibilities."
According to the President of the Government, it is necessary to disregard the duality between the new challenges and the old policies. We must face the real challenge that "lies ahead of us and to debate what really matters to people and not what matters to Brussels."
"It is not acceptable that a Europe that is now beginning to overcome a brutal economic and financial crisis should remain silent and accept cuts in important policies. In fact, these policies have already shown that they are capable of fostering economic, social and territorial cohesion as well as a genuine sense of belonging among European citizens," stated the government official.
"To the members representing the Parliament and the States, we now launch a challenge for the upcoming phases of this process, whose results should not be hindered by the desired rapid approval of the next Financial Framework. In fact, we intend to improve some of the proposals under discussion to leverage the full potential that our contribution, as European Regions, may further bring to the Europe to which we are loyal," stressed Vasco Cordeiro.
CPOR is a political cooperation structure that gathers the Presidents of the executive bodies of the Outermost Regions of the Azores, Madeira, the Canaries, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Martinique, Réunion, Mayotte and Saint Martin. These territories comprise almost five million European citizens.