Committee of the regions gets closer to EU parliament

A blueprint has been unveiled aimed at improving relations between parliament and the committee of the regions (CoR).

The relationship between the two institutions is set to increase in importance under the Lisbon treaty, which will require parliament to consult the CoR in the same way as the commission and council, on about two-thirds of the EU’s legislative output.

But Luc Van den Brande, CoR president, says the relationship can be improved further still.

He has proposed a "toolbox of instruments" to be put in place on a case-by-case basis with parliament’s committees.

The existing close ties between the CoR’s commission for territorial cohesion policy and parliament’s regional development committee are seen as a good example to follow.

But Van den Brande cites other examples where cooperation could improve, including more bilateral meetings between the chairs of parliamentary committees and their CoR counterparts, and between rapporteurs of the two assemblies.

One recent example of this, he said, was a meeting between the CoR education chair and parliament’s equivalent, in which they agreed to propose a joint hearing on the 2009 European year of creativity and innovation.

He said that while parliament’s rapporteurs "very often" attend CoR meetings and events, there is "room for improvement" regarding the possibility of CoR rapporteurs presenting their work in parliamentary committees.

The Belgian politician set out his proposals during a recent meeting with the chairs of parliament’s various committees.

He said the CoR was a "valuable partner" for parliament and could provide "a great added value" to its work on issues such as environmental policy and the jobs and growth agenda.

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