A4-0252/97

Resolution on the Commission communication on cohesion policy and culture: a contribution to employment (COM(96)0512 - C4-0056/97)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission communication (COM(96)0512 - C4-0056/97),

- having regard to the White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness and Employment, which identified the cultural sector as a prospective source of employment (COM(93)0700 - C3-0509/93),

- having regard to Article 130a of the EC Treaty, which provides for the Community to promote actions leading to the strengthening of economic and social cohesion,

- having regard to Article 128 of the EC Treaty, which requires the Community to take cultural aspects into account in its action under other policies,

- having regard to Article 3b of the EC Treaty pertaining to the principle of subsidiarity,

- having regard to the conclusions of the informal meeting of the Council of Ministers responsible for Regional Policy and Regional Planning held on 3 and 4 May 1996 in Venice,

- having regard to the Commission's first report on the consideration of cultural aspects in European Community action (COM(96)0160 - C4-0249/96),

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Policy and the opinions of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education and the Media (A4-0252/97),

A. whereas the diversity and wealth of Europe's cultural heritage and its economic potential have not yet been exploited to their full extent; whereas culture should be considered not only from a purely national, regional and local point of view but also as part of the European heritage and evidence of a common civilization, culture, identity and tradition,

B. whereas, for local and regional societies, cultural heritage and cultural skills are not only a commercial asset but also, and above all, the foundations for the promotion of regional identity, self-reliance and a community-based approach to local development,

C. having regard to the great importance of minority languages and cultures as a key feature of the European cultural heritage,

D. having regard to current trends in society, namely the expanding service sectors, increasing personal mobility and free time, rising standards in education and information and increased demand for leisure pursuits and cultural activities,

E. whereas the Structural Funds constitute the most important instrument for promoting culture, and whereas, under the existing regulations, cultural activities cannot attract Community funding unless they form part of regional or local development projects for the creation of permanent jobs,

F. whereas the potential role of the Structural Funds in the cultural sphere and job creation is not being adequately exploited,

G. whereas culture, by virtue of its social and economic dimension, is an important endogenous regional development factor which can make a significant contribution to employment and promote growth and innovation both for regional economies and for the private sector,

H. whereas powers in the cultural sphere lie in many cases with regional governments,

I. having regard to the significant potential for the direct or indirect creation of permanent and skilled employment that may be generated by the cultural sector in all its aspects,

J. having regard to the undeniable impact of cultural amenities and activities on the locating of new investment, on the promotion of a region's image and attractiveness and, hence, on its development,

K. whereas cultural activities are more effective when they form part of a sustainable development strategy encompassing economic development, social cohesion and environmental protection,

L. having regard to the undeniable effects of cultural development on the preservation or restoration of the identity of urban and rural communities and, more generally, on the strengthening of economic and social cohesion, one of the EU's main objectives,

M. whereas only 8% of total resources earmarked for the cultural sector have in fact been allocated to specifically cultural programmes,

N. whereas, although Community initiatives to promote regional cultural development, which are often very successful, mainly originate in programmes financed by the Structural Funds (Objectives 1, 2, and 5b and Community Initiative Programmes), the proportion of appropriations allocated to such projects remains extremely small (the programming of the Funds makes it difficult to quantify the exact level of expenditure, which is estimated at ECU 400 million for the 1989-1993 programming period, and at some 3% of total Structural Funds appropriations),

O. whereas culture can play a positive role in promoting social integration and the reintegration of social strata liable to be excluded from employment (including people with disabilities, the unemployed and the unskilled), thereby helping to promote cohesion by means of cooperatives, associations and foundations,

P. having regard to the crucial role played by women in regional development as persons who hand down cultural traditions, create jobs and are a driving force behind local development,

Q. whereas, in the light of the Union's prospective enlargement to include the CEECs, Cyprus and Malta, concerted action with those countries in the cultural sector could have beneficial effects, particularly in view of their respective cultural, social and religious differences, and having regard, similarly, to the European Union's cooperation programmes with Mediterranean third countries,

R. whereas 1999 has been declared International Tourism Year; whereas tourism plays an important role in the attempt to reduce disparities between regions; whereas culture makes a significant contribution to the promotion of traditional and alternative tourism,

S. having regard to the importance of Article 10 of the ERDF Regulation concerning the promotion of new initiatives with a value-added dimension in the context of a cultural policy that seeks to promote cohesion,

1. Welcomes the Commission communication in that it emphasizes the importance of the cultural sector and clearly demonstrates the economic potential of cultural activities and the role these can play in achieving more balanced and stable social and economic development;

2. Recalls that, as long ago as 1993, on the initiative of its Committee on Culture, Youth, Education and the Media, it called on the Commission and the Council to take cultural activities into account as a development factor, in its opinions on the revision of the Cohesion and the Structural Funds;

3. Expresses its satisfaction at the fact that the communication reveals a wider understanding of the role of culture as a development 'resource' and considers that this must be followed up by specific measures to ensure that culture is fully integrated into cohesion and development policies, since cohesion is a key concept in the European project which concerns all the Member States and not just the four countries which benefit from the Cohesion Fund;

4. Notes that the requirement to implement cultural projects, as is the case at the moment, in accordance with the criteria of the existing cohesion and development programmes, has revealed such projects to be highly compatible with the objectives of those programmes, and also observes that this requirement has the added bonus of having brought about the incorporation of a cultural dimension into other spheres of activity and thereby prevented any possible risk that cultural activities might become isolated from the general development of society;

5. Stresses that, in the wake of the White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness and Employment, various papers and studies on the subject of new services or the 17 job-creating sectors have stressed the major job-creation potential of employment in cultural activities;

6. Stresses that these activities are inherently flexible and can easily be adapted for implementation at local and regional level, thereby helping to stabilize local populations, by counteracting population-flight and desertification, to preserve the regional, national and world cultural heritage, and, finally, to contribute to economic and social cohesion;

7. Recalls that employment in cultural sectors, as defined hitherto and expressed in statistical terms, accounts for 3.1 million jobs in the countries of the European Union, i.e. 1.8% of the working population and 2.1% of all employment;

8. Supports the Commission's initiative to use this assessment and discussion as a basis for creating statistical sources with a common nomenclature, thus resolving methodological problems and making possible a common definition of cultural employment, without prejudice to specific national and regional characteristics;

9. Calls on the Commission and on the Member States to highlight in their statistics the proportion of jobs generated directly or indirectly by cultural activities as well as by the projects financed by the various Structural Funds based on action to safeguard the architectural and historical heritage;

10. Stresses in this connection that a conscious effort to satisfy new needs, providing a local supply in response to steadily growing demands for cultural goods and services, will create large numbers of jobs in the cultural sector, both directly and indirectly;

11. Notes with concern that, if budgetary policy remains restrictive in order to meet nominal convergence criteria and more concerned with increases in spending than with balances, the pattern of growth in cultural employment will continue to slow down or go into reverse, since much cultural activity depends, at least in the initial stages, on public subsidies at national or regional level;

12. Draws attention to the specific nature of cultural activities and jobs, which are seasonal and involve multiple activities and are therefore predominantly part-time, independent and highly vulnerable in terms of stability and long- term prospects;

13. Considers that the future Treaty and the Structural Funds Regulations, when revised in 1999, must explicitly recognize the leading role of culture and the importance of its impact on employment, economic development, the strengthening of economic and social cohesion and the preservation of regional identity, and considers that adequate funding must be made available for this purpose;

14. Calls for a balanced approach in the support of all types of cultural activities, in particular between heritage conservation and any other field of cultural expression;

15. Stresses that the potential of the European heritage, which is extremely rich in most regions, but particularly in the Mediterranean area of Europe - and, what is more, in economically disadvantaged regions - is far from being fully exploited and that special attention must be paid to the islands, where traditional cultural activity can have a stabilizing effect on the delicate balance of those regions;

16. Considers that action to restore and develop this heritage for cultural purposes, particularly in the context of high-quality tourism, must become a priority for Single Programming Documents and mobilize sufficient Community funds to exercise a multiplier effect on public and private investment, inter alia with a view to the Jubilee and the festivities planned for ushering in the third millennium;

17. Notes, with particular reference to the promotion of renovation work in historical town centres, that care must be taken to ensure that such projects are carried out on the basis of restoration and renovation programmes which are in line with the objective of making old town centres multifunctional or, rather, by preserving residential areas and the infrastructure needed to maintain habitability and by promoting the revival and development of the commercial, craft, tourist, social and cultural activities associated with a town's historical tradition so as to restore the vitality thereof, thus re- enhancing the artistic and architectural heritage and making services modern and viable; stresses the need to avoid the danger of towns becoming museums which are no longer suitable for living in;

18. Reasserts the importance of cooperation between the public, private and non- profit sectors in the context of local initiatives and of respect for the principle of partnership between regions of the same State and between regions of different States and in the context of initiatives promoted by cultural foundations, associations and cooperatives;

19. Stresses the importance of supporting the development of public/voluntary sector or public/private partnerships and of putting restored buildings to use as part of local employment schemes;

20. Notes that, if they are to develop all its potential for direct and indirect job creation, programmes to restore the architectural heritage must be integrated into a coordinated regional cultural policy, linked to a policy of promoting high-quality tourism and combined with essential accompanying measures to improve local transport and hotel infrastructure in order to facilitate access to and accommodation at such sites;

21. Notes, also, that vigorous action needs to be taken to provide flexible training to equip workers, both permanent and seasonal, with the skills required both for the exploitation, conversion and conservation of the heritage and for the promotion of artistic, tourist-oriented and cultural activities, with the aim of increasing job opportunities;

22. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to provide assistance and support for traditional craft schools which are struggling to survive at present and which can contribute to the revival of tradition and help boost employment and maintain the balance of small, local communities;

23. Suggests envisaging the application of a harmonized reduced VAT rate to work related to the restoration and maintenance of historical monuments, partly with a view to encouraging projects involving monuments that are not wholly state-owned;

24. Stresses, also, the important role that can be played by a policy of promoting high-quality architecture in connection with the renovation - where appropriate - of the architectural heritage;

25. Bearing in mind also the Commission's guidelines in its communication 'Towards an urban agenda in the European Union' (COM(97)0197), calls for concerted action between local authorities, the regional and national institutions and the European Union in order to achieve better structuring which improves the quality of supply to adapt it and and make it competitive for the global market;

26. Stresses the importance of cultural and/or artistic activities such as restoration and crafts, not only for youth training and employment but also to enhance the image of a region and revitalize it as a tourist destination;

27. Believes that, under the current Structural Fund Regulations (in particular the ERDF), investment in cultural goods is excessively oriented towards obtaining immediate spin-offs for tourism; considers that, as well as this requirement being taken into account, attempts should be made to turn all the components of the 'culture industry' (protection, conservation, research, craft trades, training, the production of services, the specialist building industry, etc.) to good use;

28. Consider that further thought should be given to the relationship between culture, cohesion and employment with a view to the revision of the Structural Funds after 1999;

29. Believes that the revision of the Structural Funds after 1999 is an opportunity (which must not be missed) for explicit incorporation of the cultural dimension from the point of view of its relation to employment, cohesion, regional development and urban renewal;

30. Calls for coordination between structural development measures and actions under the ESF to ensure that the two Funds cooperate in connection with projects involving the restoration, conservation and development of the architectural heritage, with a view to exploiting all available possibilities with regard to training, reintegration and employment;

31. Calls on the Commission, through the European Social Fund, to promote training in the various trades associated with cultural activities which generate permanent jobs, with emphasis on aspects of management and the new technologies which have evolved in connection with the information society;

32. Stresses, also, the desirability of promoting initiatives likely to ensure the preservation of the natural heritage (landscape protection and nature reserves) and rural traditions (local crafts and produce), both on environmental grounds and to meet growing demand ('green' tourism); further stresses that this priority must be recognized in the Structural Funds, in view of the impact of such projects on economic and social cohesion in rural areas (Objective 5b);

33. Notes that, as illustrated by many successful ventures in this area, there is considerable scope for initiatives to promote all forms of art and their dissemination in disadvantaged urban and rural areas, which offer numerous employment opportunities and improve the quality of social life;

34. Considers that sport should be viewed as a cultural activity and used as an aid to promote integration and combat racism and xenophobia;

35. Emphasizes the important role of small and medium-sized undertakings, in particular the craft industry, in the cultural sphere and therefore believes that the mechanisms for access to the Structural Funds must take account of the specific problems facing this type of undertaking and the fruitful role which can be played by associations of undertakings;

36. Supports the funding of innovative pilot projects (through improved and better-targeted use of Article 10 of the ERDF Regulation) in the cultural sector and in the field of interregional and/or cross-border cultural exchanges based on close cooperation between regions or local authorities; urges the Member States and the Commission to cooperate in identifying cultural resources which have untapped employment potential and to join forces to devise innovative pilot projects with the support of local authorities;

37. Considers that there must be closer cooperation at all levels between those responsible for the cultural sphere and those responsible for regional development policies and the Structural Fund programmes; believes, in this connection, that there should be greater collaboration between DG X and DG XVI in the Commission with a view to formulating suitable strategies enabling culture to be fully integrated into regional policy; proposes that the Commission should consider setting up a task force comprising representatives of the DGs which are most closely involved in culture, education and training in order to define common strategies and analyse programmes and projects, in the light of an integrated policy, as envisaged in the conclusions of the Council of Ministers for Culture of 30 June 1997;

38. Approves in principle the Commission communication, therefore, and calls on it to formulate all the necessary proposals, including:

- the incorporation of a specific cultural dimension at the programming stage;

- action to inform, consult and mobilize all those involved at local level as well as regional governments where appropriate, by establishing a close partnership with all concerned and highlighting the role of women as parties engaged in the campaign to increase awareness and to coordinate local bodies;

- dissemination of the experience gained, for example, by setting up innovative and technologically advanced libraries with a view to providing democratic access for all citizens of Europe;

- use of the new information technology;

- an integrated and coordinated approach incorporating all the Community policies involved (research, education, vocational training, industrial policy, CAP etc.);

- a comprehensive explanatory campaign designed for local and regional operators which could encourage the submission of proposals from the outset;

39. Calls on the Commission to use all the means available to make the Member States and the regions fully aware of the importance of the cultural sector in cohesion policies; believes that examples of good practices should be made widely known and that innovatory instruments should be used to this end to facilitate the exchange of experiences in this sector (support for networks, dissemination projects, encouragement for 'transferable' innovation, etc.);

40. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the regions devise balanced cultural development programmes which take into account all categories of cultural activity; believes that these development programmes should be drawn up in close cooperation with representatives of the cultural sector in the regions;

41. Believes that the development of European partnership networks in the cultural sphere is of crucial importance for the quality of cultural activities within the Union and in relations with partners from third countries; calls on the Commission to extend and improve the instruments available for providing support for such networks;

42. Draws attention to the contradiction between the Commission's declared interest in European cultural networks and the lack of Community support for the operation thereof, without which they are unable to exist and operate effectively; notes, further, that support at national level is not readily available for cultural projects with a strong European dimension and suggests that the Commission should review its guidelines in this area so as to enable the networks and their associated projects to be fully developed;

43. Calls on the Commission to publish a Green Paper on the culture industry so that an aspect of crucial importance for the future of the cultural sector can be taken into account when the necessary instruments for the future are being drawn up;

44. Believes that a framework programme for culture, grouping together all the Community's direct activities in the cultural sphere, could have the useful dual effect of extending and improving the Union's cultural action and providing the necessary boost for and complementing the decentralized role of the Structural Funds; calls on the Commission, therefore, to submit a proposal for reorganizing the Community's cultural programmes; points out that listening carefully to cultural bodies which are established at grassroots level and which, in certain cases, have given extensive consideration to the matter is essential if the new framework programme is to be in accordance with the proposed objectives;

45. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Committee of the Regions and the parliaments and governments of the Member States.