New Cohesion legislation entered into force on 1 July 2021

The European Parliament adopted the political agreements of the Cohesion’s legislative package 2021-2027, and the co-legislators (Commission and Parliament) signed a €373 billion’s worth Cohesion policy, ending the legislative procedure with a slightly increased budget, but there is still uncertainty about the cohesion impact of the additional funding under New Generation EU (the Recovery Fund), implemented through national plans and envelopes.

Main decisions were already advanced at the end of the Trilogue negotiations in December 2020, but remaining were made and the Cohesion package was closed by the EU institutions. The Regulations were published in the Official Journal of the EU on 30 June 2021 (OJEU, vol. 64, L231) and entered into force on 1 July 2021. Implementing acts will follow, detailing available resources per Member States and the categories of regions. Then, Member States and regions will prepare the programming documents.

On 17 January 2022, the Commission has adopted two important decisions regarding Interreg VI:

• Implementing decision (EU) 2022/74 setting out the list of Interreg programmes and indicating the global amount of the total support from the ERDF and from each external financing instrument of the Union for each programme and the list of the amounts transferred between strands under the European territorial cooperation goal for the period 2021 to 2027.
• Implementing decision (EU) 2022/75 setting out the list of Interreg programme areas to receive support from the European Regional Development Fund and external financing instruments of the Union, broken down by strand and Interreg programme under the European territorial cooperation goal.

 

 

 

The Cohesion Package includes:

• the Interreg Regulation laying down specific provisions for the European territorial cooperation goal supported by the ERDF and external financing instruments;
• the Common Provisions Regulation (CPR) for shared management funds;
• the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF) Regulation;
• the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) Regulation;
• the Just Transition Fund.

The new CPR is a joint legal framework for eight shared management funds: the ERDF, the CF, the ESF+, and also the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund, the Just Transition Fund (JTF), and financial rules for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Border Management and Visa Instrument and the Internal Security Fund.

For many border regions, the JTF is very promising, and the CPR establishes key elements for the functioning of the new Just Transition Fund (JTF) Regulation which completes the  Cohesion policy funds 2021-2027. The European Parliament has also adopted the Public Sector Loan Facility that will effectively complete all proposals under the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM). This regulation is announced to be adopted by the Council on 12 July.

The JTF is a key element of the European Green Deal and the first pillar of the JTM, aimed to alleviate the social and economic costs resulting from the transition towards a climate-neutral economy, diversifying the economic activity and helping people adapt in a changing labour market.

The ERDF and CF Regulation sets specific provisions for the European Regional Development Fund (€226 billion) and the Cohesion Fund (€48 billion), contributing to strengthening cohesion by correcting imbalances between regions, while delivering on the Union’s political priorities through a thematic concentration of resources.  The CF will support projects in the field of environment and trans-European networks in the area of transport infrastructure.

The European Social Fund Plus is the key financial instrument to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, to support jobs and create a fair and socially inclusive society. €99.3 billion (in current prices) in 2021-2027 for Member States to create and protect jobs, promote social inclusion, fight poverty, including by combatting homelessness, and prepare workers for the digital and green transitions. It includes a requirement to invest in young people and address child poverty.

Interreg VI continues with a similar architecture and most €8.1 billion budget is devoted to the traditional strands (cross border, transnational and interregional). It sets up a new strand to reinforce the regional cooperation of outermost regions. And it will also cover cooperation at the external borders of the Union through the support of external instruments such as the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA) and the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI).

Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, said: “Now we need to focus on implementation in a way that provides the best possible support to regional and local authorities, citizens and companies. A spirit of partnership was key in the design of this package; the partnership principle will be crucial for a successful implementation.”

Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights Nicolas Schmit added: “Cohesion funds are an integral part of the EU’s toolkit to support Member States in building a stronger, more inclusive Europe. The European Social Fund Plus invests in people. It helps workers to re-skill and up-skill, to be ready for the transition to a green and digital economy. It protects the most vulnerable in our society, such as children in need and homeless people. And it gives a boost to entrepreneurs and innovators in need of financial support.”

Breakdown of Cohesion Policy allocations per Member State (current prices)

 

 

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