European Parliament resolution of 6 April 2022 on the start of the implementation of the 2021-2027 cohesion policy (2022/2527(RSP))
Date: 2022-04-06
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: EU environmental policy, EU regional policy, economic and social cohesion, economic disparity, economic recovery, investment policy, regional development, regional disparity, sustainable development








C_2022434EN.01002801.xml










15.11.2022   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 434/28






P9_TA(2022)0113
Implementation of the 2021-2027 cohesion policy
European Parliament resolution of 6 April 2022 on the start of the implementation of the 2021-2027 cohesion policy (2022/2527(RSP))
(2022/C 434/05)

The European Parliament,






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having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in particular Articles 4, 162, 174-178 and 349 thereof,










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having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, the Cohesion Fund, the Just Transition Fund and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund and financial rules for those and for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Internal Security Fund and the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (Common Provisions Regulation) (1),










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having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 (2),










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having regard to Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 July 2018 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, amending Regulations (EU) No 1296/2013, (EU) No 1301/2013, (EU) No 1303/2013, (EU) No 1304/2013, (EU) No 1309/2013, (EU) No 1316/2013, (EU) No 223/2014, (EU) No 283/2014, and Decision No 541/2014/EU and repealing Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 (3),










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having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/1058 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 on the European Regional Development Fund and on the Cohesion Fund (4),










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having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/1059 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 on specific provisions for the European territorial cooperation goal (Interreg) supported by the European Regional Development Fund and external financing instruments (5),










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having regard to the Commission communication of 4 February 2022 entitled ‘8th Cohesion Report: Cohesion in Europe towards 2050’ (COM(2022)0034),










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having regard to the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 March 2022 amending Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 and Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 as regards Cohesion’s Action for Refugees in Europe (CARE) (COM(2022)0109),










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having regard to the question to the Commission on the implementation of the 2021-2027 cohesion policy (O-000002/2022 — B9-0006/2022),










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having regard to Rules 136(5) and 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,










A.


whereas cohesion policy continuously represents the main EU-wide investment and solidarity policy for social equality and just transition, and is an established catalyst for sustainable growth and jobs, for economic, social and territorial cohesion in the EU, and for achieving the EU’s climate targets, the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals, with a budget amounting to EUR 392 billion until 2027;










B.


whereas the pandemic was the primary reason for the delay in the cohesion policy negotiations, which caused a subsequent delay in the adoption of the legislative framework for the funding period 2021-2027; whereas the majority of the Member States seemed unable to speed up the preparation of the programming process;










C.


whereas prioritising the preparation of the recovery and resilience plans, as well as REACT-EU spending, while necessary in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, has inadvertently contributed to the aforementioned delay;










D.


whereas cohesion policy funding should comply with the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the rule of law and the European code of conduct on partnership;










E.


whereas partnership agreements and programmes are strategic tools for guiding investments in Member States and regions, according to the latest information available, but only a few have been submitted to date, with only one (in Greece) having been adopted;










F.


whereas the above has resulted in only 0,2 % of commitment appropriations planned for 2021 under Heading 2.1: ‘Economic, social and territorial cohesion’ being committed, which is significantly less compared to 2014 (4,22 %), also due to the priority given to new funds and initiatives, such as the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), React-EU and the Just Transition Fund;










G.


whereas the Commissioner for Budget and Administration is on the record stating that he expects nearly the entirety of the 2021 budgetary allocation to have to be reprogrammed for the following years, on the basis of Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 (6);












1.


Expresses its serious concern as regards the significant delay in the implementation of cohesion policy for the 2021-2027 period, while recognising the importance of adopting high-quality programmes at the start of the programming period in order to avoid reprogramming at a later stage;












2.


Stresses that the current delays are challenging national, regional and local authorities’ capacity to plan effectively, implement the EU cohesion policy funds for the 2021-2027 period and ensure European regions’ economic recovery and resilience;












3.


Recalls that cohesion policy, together with the co-financing ensured by the Member States, continues to provide for a major proportion of the growth-related public expenditure in the EU and is an important instrument to fight climate change and support the achievement of the Paris Agreement objectives; stresses that it is therefore imperative to start the implementation of the new programmes as soon as adopted in order to strengthen economic, social and territorial cohesion in the EU, to correct imbalances between and within countries and regions, to deliver on the Union’s political priorities, in particular a fair and inclusive green and digital transition, to maximise the results of the investments in sustainable growth, to increase productivity, to boost job creation, to counteract loss of biodiversity and to comply with the ‘do no significant harm’ principle;












4.


Urges the Commission and the Member States to do their utmost to speed up the adoption of partnership agreements and programmes in the shortest time frame possible without undermining the climate contribution targets, the partnership principle and the consultation process with local and regional authorities, as well as civil society organisations, while encouraging community-led local development and other bottom-up approaches; demands, in particular, that the Commission — while maintaining a high focus on quality, the horizontal principles and the need to keep up the fight against fraud — analyse all possible ways of streamlining its internal procedures in support of this process;












5.


Calls on the Member States to consider cohesion policy and the RRF a budgetary and operational tandem, instead of prioritising the implementation of the national recovery and resilience plans over the programming and implementation of the cohesion programmes; considers it fundamental to establish complementarity within and between the cohesion programmes and the RRF, and to avoid overlaps in their implementation; calls on the Commission to ensure that the Member States respect the principle of resource additionality with regard to the cohesion programmes;












6.


Calls on the Commission, in this regard, to take full advantage of the possibilities existing in the current Common Provisions Regulation for faster approval of partnership agreements and programmes, while respecting the Code of Conduct on Partnership;












7.


Asks the Commission, in view of the above, to cooperate with the Member States and to present to Parliament the measures it envisages taking to facilitate the implementation of the programmes, together with the timeline envisaged;












8.


Is concerned that any perceived under-implementation might lead to calls for a reduction in the cohesion policy budget in the next programming period; calls on the Commission, therefore, to put forward a contingency plan to mitigate the risk of under-implementation and decommitments due to the late start of the programmes through a legislative proposal during the mid-term review and, if necessary, by means of a corresponding revision of the multiannual financial framework;












9.


Underlines that the current delay in the implementation of the 2021-2027 cohesion policy programmes hinders Member States’ ability to react, in the context of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, not only to the energy and supply crisis, but also to the refugee crisis in the medium and long term; welcomes the temporary flexibility and additional measures offered by the CARE proposal and the latest Commission proposal on increased pre-financing, which will help to increase the Member States’ ability to react to this humanitarian crisis; draws attention to the fact that CARE would not have a negative budgetary impact and would not affect ongoing programmes, projects and investments; stresses, however, that CARE and the proposed use of REACT-EU funding might not be sufficient in the context of the current refugee crisis; encourages the Commission to check whether it would be possible to use the 2022 funds under the current funding period, which might be decommitted due to delays in programming, for CARE II, in order to ensure continued care for refugees;












10.


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






(1)  OJ L 231, 30.6.2021, p. 159.

(2)  OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11.

(3)  OJ L 193, 30.7.2018, p. 1.

(4)  OJ L 231, 30.6.2021, p. 60.

(5)  OJ L 231, 30.6.2021, p. 94.

(6)  Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 (OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11).