The future of European Union cohesion policy after 2027 was the focus of a plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions in Brussels, at a critical moment in discussions over the EU's next long-term budget for 2028–2034.
Europe's local and regional leaders expressed strong support for retaining a robust, genuinely decentralised cohesion policy covering every European region. They also voiced clear reservations about proposals to concentrate responsibilities within member states, potentially reducing regions' and municipalities' roles in planning and managing European funds.
During the plenary debate on the results of the cohesion policy mid-term review, attended by European Commission Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms Raffaele Fitto, Giorgos Hatzimarkos stressed that cohesion policy must remain a strong investment instrument closely connected to local government and communities.
Mr Hatzimarkos, Vice-President of the European Committee of the Regions and President of the Union of Greek Regions, warned of the risks of excessive centralisation. He called for stronger multilevel governance and meaningful cooperation between European, national and regional institutions.
The post-2027 framework, he argued, must ensure that every part of Europe continues to benefit from European investment and sustain a thriving population.
“The European Commission's argument about the need for speed and effectiveness is understandable,” he said. “What we cannot accept is that the solution should be to exclude regions from managing European funding. That would diminish Europe's local government and undermine our role.”
He reiterated that regions are the institutions closest to local communities' needs and have demonstrated their effectiveness in managing successive crises. Without meaningful local government participation, he said, there can be no substantive, fair and sustainable European cohesion policy.
The plenary unanimously adopted Committee of the Regions opinions emphasising three priorities: preserving predictable cohesion policy support for all regions; rejecting national investment plans when regions have not meaningfully participated in their preparation; and establishing strong multilevel governance and mandatory partnership across European policies to safeguard Europe's cohesion.
