Searching for consensus: The debate on reforming EU Cohesion Policy

Abstract:

In February 2004, the European Commission put forward its budgetary proposals for the 2007-13 period followed by the publication of the Third Cohesion Report outlining changes to cohesion policy. The aim of this paper is to examine the key questions associated with EU cohesion policy reform. The paper reviews the main events of the past year having a bearing on the reform debate and outlines the European Commission's proposals for future cohesion policy as a basis for discussing their implications. The first set of implications relate to eligibility issues. The paper considers how the Member States will benefit under the different priorities on the basis of current information about eligibility criteria. It also examines the potential allocation of funding to Member States under the different categories of support, applying different methodologies (both top-down and bottom-up) in order to replicate the Commission's approach. The paper goes on to discuss the debate among Member States, first with respect to the overall financial framework for 2007-13 and then regarding the proposals for cohesion policy. Finally, the paper highlights questions about the scope for making savings on the budget, the approach to the negotiations, the focus for future spending, the objectives of territorial cohesion and the new planning framework.