He European Committee of the Regions (CoR) It is an advisory body of the European Union (EU) established in 1994, composed of locally and regionally elected representatives from all 27 Member States of the European Union. Through the CoR, representatives can make their opinions known on European Union legislation that directly impacts European regions and cities.
In addition, the European Committee allows regions and cities formally participate in the drafting of European Union legislation, ensuring that the position and needs of regional and local authorities are respected.
In this regard, the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, and the European Parliament must consult the Committee of the Regions when drafting legislative acts on matters related to local and regional government, such as health, education, employment, social policy, economic and social cohesion, transport, energy, and climate change. Otherwise, the Committee of the Regions may refer the matter to the Court of Justice. Furthermore, once the Committee of the Regions receives a legislative proposal, it drafts and adopts an opinion, which it will submit to the relevant EU institutions.
On the one hand, as regards the compositionThe Committee of the Regions is made up of elected representatives serving on behalf of the local or regional authorities of the Member States. Members of the Committee of the Regions are distributed according to the population of each state. Each country designates its members, and the Council of the European Union (EU) appoints them for a renewable five-year term.
On the other hand, on the functionality The Committee of the Regions appoints a rapporteur (one of its members), who consults with stakeholders and prepares an opinion. The CoR committee responsible for the policy area in question discusses and adopts the text, which is then sent to all relevant European Union institutions. The opinion is then presented in plenary session to all members, who vote on its amendment and adoption. These sessions are held six times a year and can cover more than 50 legislative projects.
The European Committee is made up of a total of 329 members, of whom 21 correspond to Spain, and the remainder is distributed among the other Member States according to their population. Among the states with the largest number of members are Germany (24 members), France (24 members), and Italy (24 members); and among those with the smallest number of members are Malta (5 members), Luxembourg (6 members), and Cyprus (6 members).
The members of each country constitute the National Delegation, which reflects the political, geographical, regional and local balance of the country concerned. Members may also choose to join one of the six political groups within the CoR, namely: The European People's Party (PPE), the Party of European Socialists (WHY), the European Alliance Group (AE), the Group of European Conservatives and Reformists (CRE), Renew Europe and the Greens.
The Autonomous Community of Andalusia, as a European region, has the Delegation of the Andalusian Government in Brussels Responsible, among other functions, for monitoring the European Union (EU) regulatory process that impacts the interests of Andalusia. It also performs a series of key tasks, such as daily monitoring of EU activity through specialized publications, meetings, etc. Once this information has been verified and processed, it is transmitted through various channels. Requests for information come not only from Management Centers but also from numerous organizations. For this reason, a news release is prepared and transmitted twice a week with the most relevant news on EU activity of interest to our Autonomous Community.
In relation to the above, it is worth highlighting that, given the size of our Autonomous Community in both area and population, the projects and general plans submitted to the Committee of Regions by the Andalusian Delegation in Brussels often exceed the scope and detail of the national general plans of other Member States.
For all these reasons, we can see the significant impact the Committee of the Regions has on our daily lives, defending the particular interests of each region and its inhabitants, so that EU regulations are as equal as possible. For our part, we can participate and contribute to the debates through the channels enabled for this purpose through social networks.
Rebeca Cabrera Mateos
Almudena Villalta García