Decision No 1622/2006/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 2006 establishing a Community action for the European Capital of Culture event for the years 2007 to 2019
Date: 2006-10-24
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: EU Member State, EU action, European cultural event, capital city, cultural policy

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I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

DECISION No 1622/2006/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 24 October 2006

establishing a Community action for the European Capital of Culture event

for the years

2007 to 2019

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

European dimension,
fining the role of the panel.

improving competition, and rede-

Having regard to the Treaty
Community, and in particular Article 151 thereof,

establishing the European

(5)

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of
Regions (1),

the Committee of

the

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article
251 of the Treaty (2),

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Decision No 1419/1999/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council (3) established a Community action
for the European Capital of Culture event for the years
2005 to 2019.

A study into the results achieved by the European City of
Culture event until 2004 showed that it had a positive
impact in terms of media resonance, the development of
culture and tourism and the recognition by inhabitants of
the importance of
their city having been designated;
however, the action still needs to be improved, parti-
cularly with regard to its
long-term effect on the
cultural development of the city and region concerned.

By enabling cities to involve their surrounding region,
including any islands, a wider public can be reached
and the impact of the event can be amplified.

The stakeholders in the event stressed problems in the
in Decision No
selection
the
1419/1999/EC,
their
proposals, particularly

recommended monitoring

to enhance

in order

process

down

and

laid

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

(1) OJ C 115, 16.5.2006, p. 56.
(2) Opinion of

published in the Official
September 2006.

the European Parliament of 5 April 2006 (not yet
Journal) and Council Decision of 25

(3) OJ L 166, 1.7.1999, p. 1. Decision as amended by Decision No

649/2005/EC (OJ L 117, 4.5.2005, p. 20).

for

The importance and impact of the European Capital of
Culture calls
the creation of a mixed selection
process,
involving national and European levels, and
the introduction of a strong monitoring and consultative
element,
to incorporate a national component and
strengthen the European dimension.

The preparation phase of
importance for
success
objectives of the action.

its

event

crucial
the
in accordance with the

is of

To guarantee the European added value of the action, a
monitoring phase after the designation is needed,
in
which, first, care is taken to fulfil the criteria laid down
for the cultural programme and, second, expert advice
and assistance is provided.

(the

selection panel)

A panel of six national and seven European experts
should be established; the whole panel comprising 13
experts
the
selection phase up to the designation of the city; only
the seven European experts on the panel (the monitoring
and advisory panel)
should oversee the monitoring
process and give guidance to the European Capitals of
Culture during the monitoring phase up to the event.

should oversee

For support and assistance, for both the applicant and
designated cities, a website should be set up, constantly
maintained and regularly updated by the Commission, on
the subject of European Capitals of Culture (application,
selection, implementation and links).

It is important to encourage the dissemination of good
practice, especially to guarantee the European added
former
the action. Therefore, networks of
value of
official
be
encouraged to play a constructive role in sharing their
experiences and best practice with future European
Capitals of Culture, notably on the basis of exchanges
during the preparation phase.

European Capitals

of Culture

should

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(11)

(12)

(13)

(14)

It is important to reward the quality of the programme in
terms of the objectives and criteria of the action and
particularly the European added value by awarding a
pecuniary prize.

To safeguard the long-term effect of the European Capital
of Culture event it is desirable to use the initiative, and
the structures and capacities that it creates, as the basis
for a lasting cultural development strategy for the cities
concerned.

To enable third countries to take part
cultural
a comparable initiative, should be explored.

in European
initiatives, the European Cultural Month (1), or

Article 3

Applications

1.
Every application shall include a cultural programme with
a European dimension, based principally on cultural co-
operation,
in accordance with the objectives and action
provided for by Article 151 of the Treaty.

The cultural programme of

2.
the event shall be created
specifically for the European Capital of Culture year, high-
lighting the European added value in accordance with the
criteria laid down in Article 4.

The designation process laid down in this Decision needs
a period of six years to be implemented; this six-year
period cannot be guaranteed for the years 2011 and
into force in
2012 given that
is
these
For
2007.
therefore provided.

a designation process

this Decision enters

years,

applicable under

3.
The programme shall be consistent with any national
cultural strategy or policy of the relevant Member State or,
where
institutional
arrangements, any regional cultural strategies, on condition
that any such strategy or policy does not aim to restrict the
number of cities which may be considered for designation as
European Capitals of Culture under this Decision.

a Member

State*s

(15)

In the interests of clarity, Decision No 1419/1999/EC
should be repealed and replaced by this Decision,

The programme shall last one year. In duly justified cases

4.
designated cities may opt for a shorter period.

HAVE DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

A linkage between the programmes of

5.
cities of the same year shall be made.

the designated

Article 1

Subject matter

A Community action entitled ‘European Capital of Culture’ is
hereby established in order
the richness and
diversity of European cultures and the features they share, as
well as to promote greater mutual understanding between
European citizens.

to highlight

Cities may choose to involve their surrounding regions in

6.
their programmes.

Article 4

Criteria for the cultural programme

Article 2

Access to the action

The cultural programme shall
subdivided into two categories,
‘City and Citizens’:

fulfil
the following criteria,
‘the European Dimension’ and

1.
Cities in Member States and in countries acceding to the
European Union after 31 December 2006 shall be entitled to be
designated as European Capitals of Culture for one year, in the
order set out in the Annex.

1. As regards ‘the European Dimension’, the programme shall:

The designation shall apply to one city in each of the

2.
Member States appearing in the list in the Annex.

(a)

foster cooperation between cultural operators, artists and
from the relevant Member States and other
cities
Member States in any cultural sector;

The chronological order given in that list may be altered by
mutual agreement between the Member States concerned.

(b) highlight the richness of cultural diversity in Europe;

(1) Conclusions of the Ministers of Culture meeting within the Council
of 18 May 1990 on future eligibility for the ‘European City of
Culture’ and on a special European Cultural Month event
(OJ
C 162, 3.7.1990, p. 1).

(c) bring the common aspects of European cultures to the

fore.

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2. As regards ‘City and Citizens’ the programme shall:

(a)

foster the participation of the citizens living in the city
and its surroundings and raise their interest as well as the
interest of citizens from abroad;

(b) be sustainable and be an integral part of the long-term

cultural and social development of the city.

The European institutions shall nominate the members of
4.
selection panels for three years as follows: two members shall
be nominated by the European Parliament, two by the Council,
two by the Commission and one by the Committee of the
in the first year during which
Regions. By way of exception,
this Decision is in force, two experts shall be nominated by the
Commission for one year, two by the European Parliament for
two years, two by the Council for three years, and one by the
Committee of the Regions for three years.

Article 5

Submission of applications

Article 7

Pre-selection

1.
A call for submission of applications shall be published by
each of the Member States concerned no later than six years
before the event in question is due to begin.

1.
Each of the Member States concerned shall convene the
relevant selection panel as referred to in Article 6 for a pre-
selection meeting no later than five years before the event is due
to begin.

Each call for submission of applications, aimed at the candidate
cities for the title, shall refer to the criteria laid down in Article
4 and the guidance available on the Commission website.

The deadline for submitting applications under each call for
submission of applications shall be scheduled 10 months after
its publication at the latest.

An application submitted under a call for submission of appli-
cations shall present the outline of the programme which the
candidate city plans to realise for the given year.

Applications shall be notified to the Commission by the

2.
Member State concerned.

Article 6

Selection panel

A selection panel shall be established for each Member
1.
State concerned to assess the applications of
the candidate
cities. Each panel shall recommend the nomination of one
city in the Member State concerned.

2.
Each selection panel shall consist of 13 members, seven of
which shall be the persons nominated by the European insti-
tutions as referred to in paragraph 4. The remaining six
members shall be nominated by the Member State concerned
in consultation with the Commission. The Member State
concerned shall then appoint the selection panel. The panel
the persons
shall designate
the
nominated by the European Parliament,
Commission and the Committee of the Regions.

chairman from among

the Council,

its

The selection panel members shall be independent experts
3.
with no conflicts of interest with regard to the cities which
responded to the call for submission of applications, and with
substantial experience and expertise in the cultural sector, in the
cultural development of cities or in the organisation of a
European Capital of Culture.

2.
The selection panel shall assess the applications of the
cities which responded to the call for submission of applications
according to the criteria laid down in Article 4.

It shall agree on a short-list of candidate cities which are to be
considered further and issue a report on the applications of the
candidate
short-listed
candidate cities.

cities and recommendations

to the

3.
The selection panel shall submit its report to the Member
State concerned and to the Commission. Each of the Member
States concerned shall formally approve the short-list based on
the report of the selection panel.

Article 8

Final selection

1.
The short-listed candidate cities shall complete their appli-
cations and transmit them to the Member States concerned,
which shall then forward them to the Commission.

2.
Each of the Member States concerned shall convene the
relevant selection panel, for final selection, nine months after
the pre-selection meeting.

The

panel

selection

amended
3.
programmes of the short-listed candidate cities according to
the criteria of this action and the recommendations issued by
the panel during its pre-selection meeting.

evaluate

shall

the

The

selection panel

4.
report on the
shall
programmes of the short-listed candidate cities together with
a recommendation for the nomination of one city in the
Member State concerned as European Capital of Culture.

issue

a

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The report shall also contain recommendations to the selected
city concerning the progress and the arrangements to be made
by the given year, if designated as European Capital of Culture
by the Council.

The report shall be submitted to the Member State concerned
and to the Commission.
shall be published on the
It
Commission website.

The Commission shall convene the panel and the repre-
4.
sentatives of the city concerned. The panel shall be convened on
two occasions to give advice on, and to take stock of, the
preparations for the event with a view to helping cities to
develop a high-quality programme with a strong European
dimension. Its first meeting shall take place no later than two
years before the event; its second meeting shall take place no
later than eight months before the event.

Article 9

Designation

1.
Each of the Member States concerned shall nominate one
city to be European Capital of Culture and shall notify the
European Parliament,
the Commission and the
Committee of the Regions thereof, no later than four years
before the event is due to begin.

the Council,

The notification must be accompanied by a justification for the
nomination based on the reports of the selection panel.

The nomination shall take into account the recommendations
issued by the selection panel.

2.
The European Parliament may forward an opinion to the
Commission no later than three months after receipt of the
nominations of the Member States concerned.

The Council, acting on a recommendation from the
3.
Commission drawn up in the light of
the
European Parliament and the justifications based on the
reports of
the selection panels, shall officially designate the
cities in question as European Capitals of Culture for the year
for which they have been nominated.

the opinion of

Article 10

Monitoring and advisory panel

1.
A monitoring and advisory panel shall be established to
monitor the implementation of the objectives and criteria of the
action and provide European Capitals of Culture with support
and guidance from the time of their designation to the start of
the European Capital of Culture event.

The panel shall consist of the seven experts nominated by
2.
the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission and the
Committee of the Regions as referred to in Article 6(4).
In
addition,
the Member State concerned may nominate an
observer to this panel.

5.
After each meeting, the panel shall issue a report on the
state of preparations for the event and any steps to be taken.
The reports shall pay particular attention to the European added
value of the event in accordance with the criteria set out in
Article 4 and the recommendations laid down in the reports of
the selection and the monitoring and advisory panels.

6.
The reports shall be forwarded to the Commission and to
the cities and Member States concerned. They shall also be
published on the Commission website.

Article 11

Prize

the report

issued by the monitoring and
On the basis of
advisory panel after
its second meeting as referred to in
Article 10(4), a pecuniary prize in honour of Melina Mercouri
shall be awarded to the designated cities by the Commission
provided that they meet the criteria laid down in Article 4 and
have implemented the recommendations made by the selection
and the monitoring and advisory panels. The prize shall be
awarded in full no later than three months before the start of
the relevant year.

Article 12

Evaluation

Each year the Commission shall ensure the external and inde-
pendent evaluation of the results of the European Capital of
the previous year in accordance with the
Culture event of
objectives and criteria of the action laid down in this Decision.

The Commission shall present a report on that evaluation to the
European Parliament, the Council and the Committee of the
Regions by the end of
following the European
the year
Capital of Culture event.

Article 13

Repeal

The cities concerned shall

3.
issue progress reports to the
Commission no later than three months before the meetings
of the panel.

Decision No 1419/1999/EC is hereby repealed. That Decision
shall however continue to apply in the case of cities which have
been designated as European Capitals of Culture for 2007,
2008 and 2009.

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Article 14

Transitional provisions

1.
The cities designated as European Capitals of Culture for
2010 on the basis of Decision No 1419/1999/EC shall be
subject to the monitoring process laid down in Article 10 of
this Decision. The Commission shall award a prize to the
designated cities on the basis of Article 11 of this Decision.

2.
By way of derogation from Articles 3 to 9, the nomi-
nations for European Capitals of Culture concerning the years
2011 and 2012 shall be governed by the following decision
procedure:

(a) Cities in Member States shall be designated as European

Capital of Culture, as set out in the Annex.

(b) Each Member State shall submit, as set out in the Annex, its
to the European
the

nomination of one or more
Parliament,
the Council,
Committee of the Regions.

the Commission

cities

and

(c) A nomination shall be submitted no later than four years
before the event in question is due to begin and may be
accompanied by a recommendation from the Member State
concerned.

(d) The Commission shall each year form a selection panel
which shall
issue a report on the nomination or nomi-
nations judged against the objectives and characteristics of
this action.

(e) The selection panel shall be composed of seven leading
independent persons who are experts on the cultural
sector, of whom two shall be appointed by the European
Parliament, two by the Council, two by the Commission
and one by the Committee of the Regions.

(f) The

selection panel

shall

submit

its

report

to the

Commission, the European Parliament and the Council.

(g) The European Parliament may forward an opinion to the
Commission on the nomination or nominations no later
than three months after receipt of the report.

(h) The Council, acting on a recommendation from the
Commission drawn up in the light of the opinion of the
European Parliament and of the selection panel's report,
shall officially designate the city in question as a European
Capital of Culture for the year for which it has been
nominated.

3.
By way of derogation from Article 4, the criteria set out in
Article 3 of and Annex II to Decision No 1419/1999/EC shall
apply in the case of European Capitals of Culture for 2010,
2011 and 2012, unless the city in question decides to base
its programme on the criteria set out
this
Decision.

in Article 4 of

Article 15

Entry into force

This Decision shall enter into force on the 20th day following
its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2007, with the exception of
Article 5, which shall apply from 23 November 2006.

Done at Strasbourg, 24 October 2006.

For the European Parliament
The President

J. BORRELL FONTELLES

For the Council
The President

P. LEHTOMÄKI

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ANNEX

Order of entitlement to nominate a ‘European Capital of Culture’ (1)

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Luxembourg

United Kingdom

Austria

Germany

Finland

Portugal

France

Sweden

Belgium

Spain

Denmark

Netherlands

Italy

Romania (1)

Lithuania

Hungary

Estonia

Slovenia

Slovakia

Latvia

Czech Republic

Poland

Cyprus

Malta

Bulgaria (2)

(1) Under the terms of Decision No 1419/1999/EC, the Romanian city of Sibiu was designated as European Capital of Culture for the year

2007.

(2) Subject to its accession to the EU, Bulgaria will participate in the European Capital of Culture event of 2019.

(1) Ireland was entitled to nominate a ‘European Capital of Culture’ in 2005 and Greece in 2006.