As elected politicians representing the local and regional level in Europe, the European Committee of the Regions is an ideal partner for policy-making in the European Parliament– Michael Schneider, President of the EPP/CoR Group, stressed at the meeting of the EPP Group in the European Parliament today. "We can complement each other's work and look forward to enhancing our cooperation even further in the months and years to come" he said.
The intervention took place following an invitation from Manfred Weber, Chairman of the EPP Group in the EP, and was an opportunity to highlight the added value of the EPP working together across EU institutions and to develop new areas for cooperation, as called for by EPP President Joseph Daul at the Madrid Congress last month.
This spirit of collaboration between the EPP Groups was also endorsed by several MEPs. MEP Lambert Van Nistelrooij underlined a need for a close contact with the grassroots levels and the citizens, dimension that the CoR brings in Brussels. MEP Fernando Ruas called for early discussions and cooperation in designing the new EU cohesion policy after 2020 and MEP Jan Olbrycht advocated for more importance given to the CoR opinions in the EP proceedings and scope for earlier interventions from local and regional authorities.
More information:
• EPP Groups in the EP and CoR have common responsibilities towards European citizens - our report on Manfred Weber's visit to the EPP/CoR Group meeting in April 2015
• Why regions matter to EPP? - Our video interview with Manfred Weber from April 2015