The 128th Plenary Session of the European Committee of the Regions takes place on 22 and 23 March in the Hemicycle of the European Parliament. Ten opinions are set to be adopted over the two days and there will also be debates with Dimitris Avramopoulos, Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship on the integration of migrants and social cohesion, Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations and Jan Olbrycht, MEP, on the expectations of local and regional authorities in the EU towards the next multiannual financial framework. Speaking ahead of the CoR Plenary and just after the vote in Parliament, Jan Olbrycht stressed: "We cannot resign from our ambitious agenda for the European Union after Brexit. The Parliament calls for continuous support after 2020 for Europe’s two long standing policies – the CAP and Cohesion Policy - at the current nominal level for EU-27. Cohesion policy should further support the development of all European regions through all three funds: ERDF, ESF and Cohesion Fund. The Parliament believes that some future oriented programmes of crucial importance for our economy, competitiveness and young people should be reinforced. We want to multiply the financing for the next generation of Horizon 2020, COSME, YEI, Erasmus+ and LIFE+. Last but not least, the Parliament recognises the need to provide EU financial support for new challenges in the field of security and defence, and to tackle the migration crisis. As a result, we call for the next MFF to be set at the level of 1,3% GNI of EU-27. If member states favour a lower level, they must decide which joint EU actions they want to reduce." [video width="900" height="900" mp4="http://epp.cor.europa.eu/files/uploads/2018/03/spreads.mp4"][/video] Read the newsletter The 5 EPP-led opinions are: The mid-term review of the implementation of the European Agenda on Migration, Dimitrios Kalogeropoulos (EL/EPP), politically accountable to the Municipal Council of Palaio Faliro The Regulation on the European citizens’ initiative, Luc Van Den Brande (BE/EPP), Member of the Management Board of the Flanders-Europe Liaison Agency, VLEVA Enlargement: Inclusion of Western Balkan Local and Regional Authorities in EU's Macro-regional, Cross-border and other Transnational Cooperation Initiatives, Franz Schausberger (AT/EPP), Delegate of the Land of Salzburg to the Committee of the Regions The cost and risk of non-cohesion: the strategic value of the Cohesion policy in pursuing Treaty's objectives and facing new challenges to the European regions, Mieczysław Struk (PL/EPP), President of Pomeranian Region A European strategy for industry: the role and perspective of regional and local authorities, Heinz Lehmann (DE/EPP), Member of the Saxony regional parliament Read the newsletter As usual, the Plenary Session will be preceded by meetings of the EPP-CoR Bureau and the EPP-CoR Group. 128th Plenary Session of the European Committee of the Regions documents

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21 March:

• 14:30-16:00 – EPP Group Bureau meeting (JDE70)
• 18:00-21:00 – Meeting of the Bureau of the CoR(JDE52)

22 March:

• 10:30-13:00 – EPP Group meeting (JDE62)
• 14:30-21:00 – 128th Plenary Session of the Committee of the Regions (Paul Henri Spaak building – Hemicycle, European Parliament)

23 March:

• 09:00-13:00 - 123rd Plenary Session of the Committee of the Regions (Paul Henri Spaak building – Hemicycle, European Parliament)