In 2015, the European Capitals of Culture celebrated their 30th anniversary. Discover the brochureillustrating successful projects in recent European Capitals of Culture and the factsheet on the history and highlights of the initiative over the years. WHAT IS IT? The European Capitals of Culture initiative is designed to: Highlight the richness and diversity of cultures in Europe Celebrate the cultural features Europeans share Increase European citizens' sense of belonging to a common cultural area Foster the contribution of culture to the development of cities In addition to...

Read more

The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, has said that he is counting on regions and cities to help the European Union listen to and address citizens' real concerns. His comment came in a meeting on 11 October with political leaders of the European Committee of the Regions. The meeting between President Tusk, and the leaders of the CoR – its President and First Vice-President and the presidents of the CoR's five political groups – came a week before...

Read more

People and organisations from across Europe came to Parliament in Brussels on 12 October for the European Citizens’ Prize award ceremony that sought to highlight their contributions to Europe. Parliament Vice-President Sylvie Guillaume, who chairs the jury, said: “Europe is going through particularly hard times and it sometimes seems to be disintegrating before our eyes. Yet European citizens show us that Europe is alive and they put European values into practice every day." A total of 50 individuals and associations...

Read more

Today the European Commission is presenting the first in a series of monthly reports on progress made towards an effective and sustainable Security Union. The report outlines the Commission's efforts in the fight against terrorism, organised crime and cybercrime and the work undertaken to strengthen the EU's resilience against these threats. It also highlights the priority areas where more work is needed and sets out concrete operational measures for the months to come. Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris...

Read more

Fraud, fragmentation and the complexity of the VAT system are a major challenge especially for border regions and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Therefore the members of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) broadly support the European Commission's move to modernise VAT in the EU through an opinion prepared by Dainis Turlais (LV/ALDE) and adopted during the October plenary. The action plan on VAT was published by the European Commission in April 2016 and is the first step towards a...

Read more

Scientific support in Europe's regions and cities will finally come to fruition thanks to the new Knowledge Centre for Territorial Policies, said Markku Markkula, President of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), at the Annual Conference of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre on 11 October. He warmly welcomed the initiative, which provides scientific support to EU regions and cities, based on their specific needs, diversity and growth potential. Opening the Annual Conference of the Joint Research Centre (JRC),...

Read more

Ladies and Gentlemen, Thank you for inviting me here today and for giving me the opportunity to be part of such a distinguished panel. The subject matter of our panel is a demanding one. Nine years after the beginning of the crisis, advanced economies are apparently settled in a regime of low growth and low inflation with no end in sight. In many places, a weary complacency seems to be reconciled with the “new normal long-term economic equilibrium”. However, in our...

Read more

Commission welcomes landmark international agreement to curb aviation emissions The European Commission welcomes the landmark agreement reached yesterday by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), with the adoption of a Global Market-Based Measure (GMBM) to reduce international aviation emissions. The European Union and its Member States played an instrumental role in brokering this deal, which constitutes the first-ever agreement to reduce CO2 emissions in a global sector. Days after the ratification of the Paris Agreement by the EU, this new multilateral deal...

Read more

"Ten months ago, in Paris, I said before the world that we needed a strong global agreement to reduce carbon pollution and to set the world on a low-carbon course. The result was the Paris Agreement. Last month, the United States and China -- the world’s two largest economies and largest emitters -- formally joined that agreement together. And today, the world has officially crossed the threshold for the Paris Agreement to take effect. "Today, the world meets the moment....

Read more