91998E0483

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0483/98

by Richard Howitt (PSE) to the Commission

(27 February 1998)

Subject: Community Initiatives and the Structural Funds

Why did the Commission propose an increase in Community Initiatives from 6 per cent to 15 per cent of the Structural Funds in 1993? Given that it now proposes a reduction from 9 per cent to 5 per cent, why has the Commission changed its mind? In what sense was it wrong in 1993?

Answer given by Ms Wulf-Mathies on behalf of the Commission

(2 April 1998)

Being aware of the importance Parliament attached to the Community Initiatives, in its 1993 Structural Fund reform proposals the Commission proposed granting 15 % of available resources to these Initiatives. The Council ultimately agreed on the figure of 9 % for the current programming period.

This 9 % was split between thirteen Community Initiatives. The implementation of these Initiatives in the Member States, with relatively small amounts of financing compared with measures carried out under the Community Support Frameworks (CSFs) and Single Programming Documents (SPDs), involved serious management and administration problems and sometimes impaired the effectiveness of the planned measures.

Nevertheless, experience of the approaches used in many Community Initiatives currently under way could be put to use and indeed consolidated when they are incorporated in the CSFs or SPDs under the new Objectives 1, 2 and 3.

In order to improve the effectiveness, visibility and innovative character of future Community Initiatives, the Commission plans, in its proposal for a regulation on the next programming period for the structural funds(1), to focus solely on three topics of common interest to be allocated 5 % of funding: cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation; rural development; and human resources, paying special attention to equal opportunities. Despite a relative decrease in the share allocated to the Community Initiatives, the increased Structural Funds budget should facilitate better quality measures.

While reducing the number of topics, the Commission is aware that the quality of the method and the approach used by the Community Initiatives must be maintained in order to preserve, and indeed bring out more clearly, the innovative character of these measures and the value added by the Community, and to develop stronger partnerships.

(1) COM(98) 131 final.