Between May and July 2010 the Committee of Regions organised public consultations on the future of the regulation No 1082/2006 on the European Groupings of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC). The consultations were supported by the EU Presidency Trio (Spain, Belgium, Hungary), the European Commission and INTERACT programme. The main objective was to gather opinions on the regulation from the Member States, established EGTCs and those under preparation, as well as regional and local authorities and other stakeholders. The results of the process were presented on 6th October in Brussels during the 8th European Week of Regions and Cities.
According the report presented by Mr Michel Delebarre, president of the COTER Commission of the CoR, 91 contributions were received during the consultations, including 15 from existing EGTCs, 15 from EGTCs under preparation, 13 from other cross-border structures (mostly euroregions), and 26 from local and regional authorities. The regulation itself was described as a valuable tool for integrated territorial cooperation and governance. Although no fundamental modifications were indicated, nearly all of the contributions advocated for a revision of the regulation, mainly concerning a simplified and more transparent EGTC formation process.
The entire report can be viewed here. For more information about the EGTCs and the consulations, please visit INTERACT or CoR websites.