European Parliament resolution on the third report on economic and social cohesion (COM(2004) 107 — C5-0092/2004 — 2004/2005(INI))
Date: 2004-04-22
Institutions: Committee on Regional Development, European Parliament
Subjects: EU regional policy, European integration, economic and social cohesion, regional cooperation, regional integration, report

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P5_TA(2004)0368

Third report on economic and social cohesion

European Parliament

resolution on the third report on economic and social cohesion
(COM(2004) 107 (cid:1) C5-0092/2004 (cid:1) 2004/2005(INI))

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to the Commission communication (COM(2004) 107 (cid:1) C5-0092/2004),

(cid:1) having regard to Article 299(2) of the EC Treaty,

(cid:1) having regard to its resolutions on gender equality in the European Union and, in particular, its resol-
ution of 13 March 2003 on the objectives of equality of opportunities between women and men in
the use of the Structural Funds (1),

(cid:1) having regard to the Presidency Conclusions of the Copenhagen European Council of December 2002

on enlargement,

(cid:1) having regard to the decisions on the reform of the common agricultural policy taken at the Agricul-

ture Council in Luxembourg on 26 June 2003,

(cid:1) having regard to the conference on the prospects for rural areas in an enlarged Europe, which took

place in Salzburg on 13 and 14 November 2003,

(cid:1) having regard to the communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parlia-
ment entitled ‘Building our common future (cid:1) Policy challenges and budgetary means of the enlarged
Union 2007-2013’ (COM(2004) 101),

(cid:1) having regard to Rules 47(2) and 163 of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism and the
opinions of the Committee on Budgets, the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and
Energy, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural
Development and the Committee on Women’s Rights and Equal Opportunities (A5-0272/2004),

A. whereas the need for a comprehensive European cohesion policy is demonstrated by the continued
existence of wide disparities in development of the various regions, a situation which will be exacer-
bated by the forthcoming enlargement of the Union,

B. whereas the strengthening of economic and social cohesion, the reduction of territorial disparities and
the promotion of harmonious, polycentric balanced and sustainable development constitute Treaty
obligations that have consistently received the support of the European Parliament,

C. whereas the draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe reinforces the cohesion objective by

the insertion of its territorial dimension,

D. whereas the structural investment brought about in the areas covered by cohesion policy by intra-
European trade, primarily in capital goods, entails economic benefits for the other parts of the Union,

E. whereas, following the next enlargement, the number of people to which cohesion aid applies will rise
from 68 million to 116 million, corresponding to a percentage increase from 18 % to 25 %; and
whereas the European Parliament has previously stated that the current threshold of 0,45 % of Com-
munity GDP allocated to the cohesion policy is a threshold beneath which it is not possible to fall
without jeopardising the achievement of the objectives laid down in the Union’s cohesion policy,

(1) OJ C 61 E, 10.3.2004, p. 370.

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F. whereas more consultation with civil society, enabling balanced and equal partnerships, will help to
ensure that the needs of people, the environment and the economic interests of the regions are given a
voice in the whole process of programming, implementation and monitoring of the Structural and
Cohesion Funds,

G. whereas, overall, the European economic and social cohesion policy has so far produced positive
results, enabling countries whose development had been lagging behind to make significant progress,
particularly in terms of economic growth, in most cases at a level higher in percentage terms that that
of the richest European Union countries,

H. whereas competition policy and regional development policy must be made consistent, implying that

State aid may not constitute an incentive for the relocation of economic activities,

I. whereas the enlarged European Union will only be able to meet the challenges of the Lisbon, Göte-
borg and Tampere agendas if it recognises that towns and cities constitute a precious source of a wide
range of benefits for the public, which have not yet been fully exploited, and that they are a major
driving force behind all economic growth, environmental sustainability, regional cohesion, democratic
participation, social inclusion, multiethnic integration and security,

J. whereas the regions ought to be more closely linked to a more effective and transparent system for

monitoring the allocation, distribution and use of the Structural Funds,

K. whereas despite the wish to promote gender equality, progress in this area is far from satisfactory,

L. whereas Europe’s unique potential for stable growth and sustained development can only be fully
exploited through a genuinely common European strategy based on Community funding, which is
aimed at areas and sectors with particular difficulties,

M. whereas the European Social Fund (ESF) has been playing the main role in achieving the equal oppor-

tunities objective when compared with the rest of the Structural Funds,

N. whereas the size and social importance of rural areas in the European Union will increase considerably

after enlargement, adding to their importance in terms of social and regional cohesion,

O. whereas the rural world is facing new challenges and has an important role to play in social and

regional cohesion,

P. whereas maintaining a living countryside and agricultural production, in particular in disadvantaged
regions or regions subject to natural constraints, on islands, in outlying regions and mountainous and
sparsely populated areas, must in future continue to be a central objective of all European Union
policies, particularly cohesion policy,

General comments

1.
Shares the Commission’s judgment that Community interventions not only provide significant added
value in terms of economic and social cohesion but also represent genuine value for money for the Union
and the Member States and enhance the sense of belonging to the European Union;

2. Welcomes the account taken of the territorial dimension in the reformed cohesion policy, which is
fully in tune with the philosophy behind the draft European Constitution, in which economic, social and
territorial cohesion are given the same importance;

3.
Recognises that the European Sustainable Development Strategy agreed at the Göteborg European
Council of 15 and 16 June 2001 is integral to achieving the strategic goal of the Lisbon Strategy, and
therefore this should be more visible for European citizens in the future Structural Funds and Cohesion
Fund interventions;

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4.
Applauds the acknowledgement by the Commission that European regional policy concerns all the
regions and Member States of the Union and expresses, therefore, its satisfaction that no renationalisation
of cohesion policy has been proposed;

5. Welcomes the Commission’s support for the need both to comply with EU environmental legislation
in all structural interventions across the EU and to fulfil the objectives of the Environmental Action Pro-
gramme;

Points out, on the basis of the experiences of recent years, that economic and social cohesion policy
6.
can make an important contribution to the development of a region if the resources transferred result in
high-quality projects capable of having a significant effect on the territory;

7. Welcomes the acknowledgement by the Commission of the need to fulfil the objectives of the
Environmental Action Programme and to comply with EU environmental legislation in all structural inter-
ventions across the EU;

Recognises the limits imposed by financial discipline upon the budget allocation to regional and
8.
cohesion policy and considers, therefore, that the sum of 0,41 % of Union GNI (or 0,46 % before transfers
to the single rural and fishery instruments) could represent an acceptable compromise;

Believes, at the same time, that it needs to be guaranteed that the appropriations transferred for rural

9.
development will continue to be put to use in the regions affected;

Notes that incorporation of the enlargement countries entails an exponential increase in investment

10.
needs and in inequalities within the Union;

11.
Urges that the Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund should retain their structure based on
expenditure targets; considers that the N+2 rule for the automatic decommitment of appropriations that
have not been implemented should be retained, since it has proved its effectiveness in improving the
implementation of funds over the current programming period;

12.

Agrees with the overall apportionment of funds to the three objectives;

13. Welcomes the fact that the absorption limit of 4 % of national GDP for allocation of funds to the
Member States has been retained, and that amounts covered by rural development and fisheries instru-
ments are also to be taken into account in this connection;

Is convinced that cohesion policy is an essential tool to enable the European Union to achieve the
14.
Lisbon objectives; therefore endorses the principles of support for innovation and enterprise in order to
stimulate regional competitiveness; considers that the implementation of the ten recommendations made
by the European Charter for Small Enterprises ought to be one of the cornerstones of this political ambi-
tion;

A new architecture for EU cohesion policy after 2006

Objective: Convergence

15.
Endorses the preservation of the threshold of 75 % of per capita Community GDP as the main
grounds for inclusion in this objective; welcomes the recognition of the so-called statistical effect and the
proposed temporary support for those regions which would otherwise lose out as a result of the lowering
of Community GDP following enlargement;

Insists that the support envisaged for regions subject to the statistical effect be satisfactorily con-
16.
firmed in the future legislative proposals of the Commission and be endowed with adequate financial
provision;

17. Welcomes the integration of the ESF into the new Convergence objective, and hopes that this will
lead to more investment in human capital in the least developed areas;

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18.
Points out that the Protocol on cohesion annexed to the Treaty on European Union stipulates that
the Cohesion Fund is to be implemented to aid those Member States whose GNP is below 90 % of the
Community average; believes that this will be of particular benefit to the new Member States;

Calls for support to be given from the ESF and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to
19.
the priority topics, particularly as regards local
the development of infrastructure for
information and communication technologies, transport and social infrastructure; points out that in these
priority areas, the social inclusion of disadvantaged groups should be promoted and barriers to access for
people with disabilities should be removed;

infrastructure,

20.
Urges the Commission to draw up particularly rigorous legislative proposals in order to make sure
that the transport infrastructure which is financed under the Cohesion Fund after 2006 contributes fully to
the development of the most environmentally-friendly modes of transport (rail, inland and maritime water-
ways, multimodal transport programmes), in accordance with the White Paper on European transport
policy for 2010;

Objective: Regional Competitiveness and Employment

21. Welcomes the introduction of a genuinely new Objective 2 to cover all the regions outside the
Convergence Objective; welcomes, at the same time, the Commission’s approach towards regional zoning
so that interventions can be carried out flexibly within the regional territory, concentrating on areas of
greatest need;

Believes, moreover, that the twin approach to the anticipation and promotion of economic change,
22.
based on regions and on people, can be both coherent and innovative, provided that the use of ERDF and
ESF funds can be guaranteed to take place in a coordinated manner; calls, in this connection, on the
Commission to ensure that the structure of the Equal Initiative will also be fully incorporated into this
priority when combating social exclusion;

23.
Believes that the aim of EU interventions should be to increase convergence and reduce regional
disparities and social exclusion; asks the Commission to develop criteria for ensuring that EU resources are
targeted, with this objective in mind, on areas of greatest need;

24.
Considers that a fair compromise has been achieved with the proposal that current Objective 1
regions which, through economic development, do not meet the eligibility requirements for the future
Convergence Objective, will nevertheless benefit from a temporary phasing-in support under this objective;

25.
Supports the proposed allocation of financial resources on the basis of Community recognised
economic, social and territorial criteria; notes in this context that regional wealth must be the decisive
criterion for budget allocation;

Stresses that firms which have recently received EU subsidies should on no account be accorded

26.
new aid purely on the basis of the relocation of their activities;

Commends the concentration of Community intervention on a limited number of themes reflecting
27.
the strategies for competitiveness and sustainable development laid down by the Lisbon and Göteborg
European Councils; believes, however, that it is necessary to gain a deeper insight into the trend regarding
and the substance of the future legislative proposals;

28.
Draws attention to the vital role of small and micro businesses, including those in traditional sec-
tors, in the economic development of urban and rural areas; stresses that these enterprises provide regional
economic stability and are key in combating depopulation;

29. Welcomes the theme of the environment and risk prevention, the consideration of the implemen-
tation of European Parliament and Council Directive 2000/60/EC (1) (the Water Framework Directive), the
development of environmentally sustainable transport measures and the financial support for Natura 2000;

(1) OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1.

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30.
Approves the link between the European Employment Strategy and the interventions under the ESF;
expresses, however, its strong concern at the weakness of the regional dimension with regard to inter-
ventions under the ESF; requests that the Commission rectify this shortcoming in its impending legislative
proposals;

31.
Points out that, without calling into question the highly positive results of regional policy, it is now
accepted that this policy has not been able to solve the serious problem of employment in the cohesion
regions; asks, therefore, for specific proposals and appropriate funding for employment;

32. Maintains that low per capita income is linked to unemployment in the regions covered by the
objective and that the Structural Funds need to be implemented with a view to creating jobs, setting up
new enterprises, and increasing productivity;

33.
Calls on the Commission to manage and monitor the use of the Structural Funds more effectively,
partly in order to prevent a negative impact on employment, working conditions and land management in
the event of the ineffective use of these funds; therefore asks for a more focused strategy with regard to
industrial restructuring and its social impact;

34.
Calls on the Commission and the Member States to employ in a targeted way active labour market
policy and adult education measures through the targeted use of resources under the Structural Funds and
Community initiatives under the heading ‘Development of human resources’;

35.
Underlines that these inequalities can be combated by greater participation by women in all levels
of education and training, lifelong access to learning, and training in new technologies; resources disbursed
for training policies, including those linked to economic changes in geographical areas or resolution of
urban issues, or developments in the countryside, must benefit women in a significant manner;

36.
Is concerned that ESF funding under the Competitiveness objective is limited to specific measures in
relation to employment strategy and appears not to take into account substantially the wider approach on
social inclusion;

37.
Notes that the effects of economic and social restructuring in the new Member States are often
detrimental to women (rising unemployment, reduced childcare infrastructure) and calls on the states con-
cerned to channel the structural funds into improving the situation of women as of 2004-2006 and
beyond; considers that a greater drive towards achieving equal opportunities should be introduced into
policies such as infrastructure, transport, the environment, regional development, fisheries etc., and calls on
the Commission to draw up specific guidelines on equal opportunities as soon as possible for all those
areas of policy;

38.
Notes that there has as yet been no summary report on incorporating gender equality into measures
co-financed by the Structural Funds and calls, therefore, on the Commission to examine, in the context of
the mid-term review of the Structural Funds, whether the provisions of the regulation on promoting equal-
ity are complied with and, on the basis of that review, to plan the rest of the programming period;

Recalls once more the importance of developing statistics broken down by gender in order to
39.
enhance the effectiveness of programming by allowing measures to be based on relevant qualitative and
quantitative indicators, so as to enable actions to be properly evaluated and to facilitate sharing of experi-
ence and information on successful measures relating to improving the situation of women;

Objective: European Territorial Cooperation

Congratulates the Commission on the proposal to create a separate objective for territorial coop-

40.
eration, building upon the success of the Interreg Initiative;

Proposes that this new organisational structure should be based on the signature of a tripartite

41.
contract between the European Union, the Member State and the regions;

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42.
Underlines the importance of continuing the three strands of transnational, cross-border and inter-
regional cooperation with the clear objective of promoting the harmonious, balanced and environmentally
sustainable development of the territory of the Union: merely shifting interregional cooperation into main-
stream programmes is not adequate to achieve that end;

Stresses that, in future, greater aid and encouragement should be given to cooperation between

43.
regions in old and new Member States;

Agrees strongly with the link to be established between the integrated programmes and the Lisbon

44.
and Göteborg agendas;

45. Welcomes the recognition of maritime frontiers, often called for by the European Parliament and
others, in the context of cross-border cooperation; asks for this recognition to apply to all European Union
maritime frontiers; welcomes the proposal for a dialogue between the Commission, Member States and
Regions for a review of the trans-national cooperation zones under Interreg IIIB; calls for a clear, compre-
hensible definition for their enforcement;

46.
Approves of the creation of a single legal instrument to allow Member States, regions and local
authorities to manage cross-border programmes more effectively; calls for the instrument to be adminis-
tered, insofar as their powers permit, by the relevant authorities below state level;

Values the coherence between the New Neighbourhood instrument and the Cooperation Objective

47.
and hopes that this can be tested as early as during the 2004-2006 period;

An integrated response to specific territorial characteristics

Stresses the importance of an integrated response that encourages a harmonious rather than a

48.
conflictual relationship between urban and rural strategies;

49.
Calls on the Commission to take into consideration the infrastructure distribution patterns in the
enlarged Union and to create opportunities for effectively exploiting the urban dimension as a mainstream
component of the Structural Funds;

50.
Underlines the necessity for a strong urban dimension, present in all three proposed objectives,
aimed especially at promoting urban regeneration and combating urban deprivation, developing the role
of the urban areas as economic drivers for the region, and the urban-rural relationship;

Also asks the Commission to prepare a framework of rules which enhances the potential for grass-

51.
roots initiatives to flourish in cities and other territorial units;

52.
Stresses without, however, disassociating urban problems from their regional and national context,
that towns, particularly small and medium-sized towns, ought to be regarded as vital elements in economic
and social cohesion;

53.
Reconfirms its commitment to the necessity of taking into account the specific problems of the
outermost regions as required under Article 299(2) of the Treaty; congratulates the Commission on its
initiative in this regard;

Reaffirms the importance of continued support for traditional industrial areas as they pursue efforts

54.
to regenerate their economies and their communities;

55.
Calls for the specific programme to offset the structural handicaps affecting the outermost regions
to be consolidated in future legislative proposals from the Commission and provided with the financial
allocation required to ensure that these regions, including those which have ceased to be covered by the
Convergence Objective, can continue to meet the investment needs entailed in their outermost location,
especially where infrastructure is concerned;

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56. Welcomes and supports the direction of the Commission’s thinking in relation to those areas suf-
fering from a permanent handicap such as islands, mountainous regions and those with a low population
density; believes, moreover, that this approach is in accordance with the consistent and often repeated
demands made by the European Parliament in the past; considers, nevertheless, that the needs of these
regions must also be covered by other EU sectoral policies;

57.
Believes that the Commission is correct in its positive approach to those areas suffering from struc-
tural handicaps such as depopulation, population ageing or difficult accessibility; considers that the needs
of the regions affected by these structural handicaps should be dealt with through ad hoc regional coop-
eration or action initiatives;

58.
Considers also that islands such as Malta and Cyprus should be treated in a similar way to other
eligible islands in the region that are at a similar level of development, so as to ensure a level playing field;

59.
Draws attention in particular, as regards regions and areas suffering from permanent handicaps, to
specific accessibility and communications policies, relating for example to postal services, education and
health, and to water, a resource essential for life;

Commends the initiative for an increase in ERDF co-financing rates to take into account certain

60.
territorial characteristics and proposes that this also apply to a regionalised ESF;

Instruments for rural areas and the fisheries sector

61.
Considers that efforts to enhance the quality of life in rural areas and promote diversification of
economic activities must include measures specifically targeted at alleviating the adverse social and econ-
omic effects of downsizing in the agricultural sector and at fostering quality-oriented and environmentally
sustainable production;

62.
Considers it necessary to retain specific innovative measures in rural areas too; calls therefore for
the launch of Leader+ programmes to be continued; urges the Commission to preserve in particular the
multi-stakeholder and participative approach;

63.
Calls on the Commission to retain in the agricultural development programme the bottom-up
method typical of the Leader Programme in which local action groups are able to determine among
themselves the substance of their activities;

64.
Notes the placing of the whole of rural development within the second pillar of the common
agricultural policy and welcomes the Commission’s intention to create a unified fund for rural devel-
opment measures, with a view to promoting sustainable development;

65.
Reiterates its insistence on the distinct nature of the problems affecting the fisheries sector as
opposed to those more generally associated with rural development; believes, moreover, that it is necessary
to distinguish more clearly between sectoral and territorial interventions; agrees strongly, therefore, with
the Commission’s proposal to clarify the role of the various instruments of support;

66. Maintains that it is vitally important to fishing countries for the fisheries sector to be developed in
such a way as to ensure that support instruments, which must be implemented in a manner consistent
with the stock conservation policy, serve to promote the sustainable development of activities and the
living and working conditions of fishermen;

67. Welcomes the intention of the Commission to establish a single fund for rural development policy
and to promote sustainable development; urges that, in future, rural development programmes should
remain essentially horizontal and thus cover all rural areas;

68.
Calls for rural development measures to continue to be seen as an adjunct to the common agricul-
tural policy and for corresponding funds to focus directly on active agricultural production and related and
downstream areas;

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69.
Emphasises the importance of a strong rural development policy also in the new Member States, by
stimulating the competitiveness of the farming sector and promoting action to support women, together
with investment in a broader rural economy;

70.
Believes that, while simpler and more decentralised management is necessary, it is appropriate to
maintain a variety of programmes tailored to specific actions in order to spend public funds effectively;
requests, therefore, that the Leader+ approach be continued;

71.
Points out that Priority 3 often covers predominantly agricultural regions in which a multifunctional
farming industry is essential for a living countryside, a factor which should be reflected in the way the
measures are implemented;

72.
Calls on the Commission to pay particular attention to young farmers in connection with rural
development measures, since young farmers make a significant contribution to the continued existence of
farming and the development of rural areas;

Notes with regret that the Commission has not confirmed an increase in the second pillar in the
73.
future EU budget as part of the proposed financial framework (cid:1) as announced in the reform of the
common agricultural policy (cid:1) but that instead it intends to freeze planned rural development spending
at the 2006 level, which would lead to a constant fall in rural development appropriations given that in
the future there will be 25 or 27 Member States;

Coordination with other policies

74.
Views favourably the determination to achieve improved coordination with other sectoral policies;
recognises, in this context, that coherence and complementarity will be enhanced by the concentration of
regional policy on limited themes and by the existence of a comprehensive cohesion strategy;

75.
Declares its satisfaction at the maintenance of state aids under Article 87(3)(a) of the Treaty in order
to promote economic development in Convergence regions; demands forcefully that equal treatment be
accorded to Convergence regions, subject to the statistical effect; notes that these aids should make a
decisive contribution to the creation of sustainable jobs, and not merely to the relocation of jobs;

76.
Believes that the new State aid guidelines for the post-2006 period should permit Article 87(3)(a)
status to be accorded to all regions eligible for convergence programmes, including those affected by the
statistical effect of enlargement;

77.
Urges the Commission to come forward with proposals for the future of State aids based on Arti-
cle 87(3)(c) of the Treaty and to reflect on how territorial differentiation might be incorporated into the
rules through the use of appropriate indicators; considers it absolutely essential to maintain territorial
differentiation in competition state aid policy in order to pursue a territorial cohesion objective;

Calls on the Commission to ensure that the relocation of businesses is not subsidised by European

78.
regional policy;

Considers that the economic and social situation of the outermost regions justifies the adoption of a

79.
different approach to levels of intensity of the state aid referred to in Article 87(3);

Believes that a new approach to economic and social development (cid:1) geared to the notion of a

80.
knowledge-based economy (cid:1) requires:

(a) policies based on the regional comparative advantage, ensuring a business environment conducive to
innovation and reform that promotes fair competition, enhances infrastructure and

adaptability,
ensures better company law and corporate governance;

(b) policies that encourage innovation and entrepreneurship, based on fiscal legislation that favour the
establishment and sustenance of SMEs by addressing the structural deficiencies arising from poor
market accessibility and the burden of financing;

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Proposes also, as part of the new approach to regional development, to link research financed by

81.
the EU under its seventh research framework programme to industrial application;

Stresses the fact that, in a new knowledge-based economy of the type envisaged by the Lisbon
82.
European Council, human capital (a labour force with appropriate levels of skills and training) is a pre-
requisite and all regions should develop the capacity to innovate, use both existing know-how and new
technologies effectively and apply techniques and methods of production that would be sustainable in
environmental terms;

83.
Attaches importance to the liberalisation of the energy market within the Trans-European Energy
Networks under the condition that these networks are completed and that the periphery is linked to such
networks;

84.
Calls for a focus on job creation in remote regions; believes that the promotion of networks and
clusters of particular activities such as inventions and applications to cultural industry based on regional
diversities and customs, and developing the potential of the tourist industry based on the principle of
regional specialisation may solve this problem;

85.
Proposes that the increasing economic importance of new areas of industry, such as eco-industries
or the cultural industries, be considered as a viable means of creating employment, especially in remote
regions; asks the Commission to draw up measures for promoting this kind of employment in those
regions;

A reformed delivery system

86.
Considers that the simplification of cohesion policy must have a high priority and therefore con-
gratulates the Commission on its generally positive attitude towards a simplification of cohesion policy and
on the advances it has proposed, particularly with regard to programming, partnership, co-financing,
evaluation, and decentralisation of responsibilities to partnerships on the ground; considers that the Com-
mission should maintain an independent monitoring and control power on the implementation of struc-
tural interventions and on their compliance with EU laws and targets; reserves the right, however, to
express its definitive opinion only once it has seen the proposals for regulations on the Structural Funds
and the Cohesion Fund;

Concurs with the adoption of an overall European strategic document for cohesion policy and the
87.
preparation of strategic policy documents by the Member States; requests that the work of the European
Spatial Development Perspective adopted in Potsdam in 1999 be continued in order to build a framework
for the territorial development of the European territory;

88.
Urges the Commission, in simplifying regional policy, to take account of the ‘user viewpoint’, i.e. to
make it easier for businesses, universities and national organisations to participate in projects without their
activities being unnecessarily hampered by bureaucracy, payment reporting requirements etc.;

89.
Asserts that the European strategic document for cohesion must be the subject of a European law
embodying the full legislative participation of the European Parliament as envisaged under Article III-119
of the draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe;

90.
Believes that such a strategic approach would enhance coherence and accountability for the policy
as a whole; responds favourably, therefore, to the proposal for an annual review by the European institu-
tions to discuss progress made; suggests that this review could take place during the spring European
Council, following consultation of Parliament;

91. Welcomes the limiting of the number of funds to three and the introduction of the principle of one
fund per programme; demands that this principle be fully respected and stresses that it is the sound
management of the Structural Funds which must be the overriding concern rather than the internal admin-
istrative structure of the Commission;

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92.
Underlines, in the light of the slow take-up of ESF funding in the current programming period, and
the proposed decentralisation, the need to strengthen administrative capacity, with special focus on the
new Member States;

Approves of the integration of the valuable experience and best practice of Community initiatives
into mainstream programming in particular, the principle of transnational cooperation

93.
such as Equal
should be emphasised;

Declares itself in favour of the proposals to enhance partnership and cooperation between the local,
94.
regional, national and EU spheres of government and to encourage Member States to utilise the possibility
of concluding tripartite agreements where appropriate; asks the Commission to develop harmonised and
binding rules and criteria for partnership association and development in the framework of the 2007-2013
Structural Funds regulations, at the same time ensuring efficient partnership through funding the costs of
their participation;

95.
Points to the need for special attention to ensure that the state and regional authorities concerned
comply with the additionality principle, whereby Community resources are to be added to and not replace
state resources, and for the Commission to be provided with the necessary means of supervision;

96.
Supports the idea of the creation of a Community reserve for rewarding progress; welcomes, more-
over, the setting-up of national reserves for responding to unexpected sectoral or local shocks on condition
that these funds have real substance and are not simply symbolic gestures;

97.
Asks the Commission to draw up for the next programming period procedures for verifying addi-
tionality that are more workable, that are integrated into the programming, monitoring and evaluation
frameworks and that are suitable for use with the budgetary and statistical information available; fur-
thermore, asks the Commission to develop specific measures such as sanctions in order to ensure com-
pliance with this principle;

98.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission.

*

*

*

P5_TA(2004)0369

Commission’s annual policy strategy for 2005

European Parliament resolution on the 2005 budget: the Commission’s Annual Policy Strategy
report (2004/2001(BUD))

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to the communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Coun-

cil (cid:1) Annual Policy Strategy for 2005 (COM(2004) 133),

(cid:1) having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 between the European Parliament,
the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary pro-
cedure (1),

(cid:1) having regard to Article 272 of the EC Treaty and Article 177 of the Euratom Treaty,

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets and the opinions of the other committees

concerned (A5-0269/2004),

(1) OJ C 172, 18.6.1999, p. 1, Agreement as amended by Decision 2003/429/EC (OJ L 147, 14.6.2003, p. 25).