INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE

IN A SURVEY OF EU LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES

on

Europe 2020: what's happening on the ground?

2012 Edition

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

This CoR survey looks at implementation of Europe 2020 on the ground and at local and regional authority involvement in, and evaluation of National Reform Programmes (see appended background document). The aim of the survey is to help the CoR monitor the extent to which Europe 2020 adds value to your local and regional policies, and assess whether the National Reform Programmes are being implemented in partnership by all government levels (possibly with recourse to multilevel governance agreements, such as the Territorial Pacts proposed by the CoR[1]).

HOW WILL THE RESULTS BE USED?

The outcome of this survey will feed into the 3rd CoR Monitoring Report on Europe 2020[2], to be published in October 2012 as a contribution to the European Commission's 2013 Annual Growth Survey, just before the 2013 Spring European Council issues political guidance for the next European Semester.

WE WOULD LIKE TO PUBLISH YOUR CONTRIBUTION ON EUROPE 2020

Section II of this questionnaire asks you to present good practices through which your administration contributes to Europe 2020 goals and targets. We may refer to your examples in the 3rd CoR Monitoring Report on Europe 2020, to help you exchange experiences with your peers and learn from them.

Please fill in this questionnaire in any eu language using the spaces provided and send your completed questionnaire in ANY TEXT (not pdf) format to:

by 13 JUNE 2012

For more information, including details of how to join the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform:

www.cor.europa.eu/europe2020

The questionnaire will be available on this website in all languages as of the first week of May.

CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION[3]:
Name of sender: / ......
Contact details:
(address, telephone, e-mail) / ......
On behalf of:
(name of local or regional authority) / ......
Country: / ......
Member of the EUROPE 2020 Monitoring Platform (formerly Lisbon Monitoring Platform)[4]: / Yes No
Type of organisation / City/Town/Municipality Region
County/Province Association of local and/or regional authorities
Other (please specify)
1) In general, to what extent are you familiar with the Europe 2020 Strategy and its seven Europe 2020 Flagship Initiatives?
Europe 2020 Strategy / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
Digital agenda for Europe / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
Innovation Union / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
Youth on the move / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
Resource efficient Europe / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
An industrial policy for the globalisation era / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
An agenda for new skills and jobs / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
European platform against poverty and social exclusion / Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
2) What would you identify as the main opportunities and challenges arising from implementing the Europe 2020 strategy at local/regional level?
......
3) To what extent can the seven Europe 2020 Flagship Initiatives help you to develop your own Europe 2020 strategy to establish more ambitious policies goals/actions?
Digital agenda for Europe / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Innovation Union / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Youth on the move / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Resource efficient Europe / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
An industrial policy for the globalisation era / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
An agenda for new skills and jobs / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
European platform against poverty and social exclusion / Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Pleaseprovideany additional commentsyou deemuseful ......
4) In general, to what extent are you familiar with your country's 2011 National Reform Programme (NRP) to achieve Europe 2020 goals?
Fully Substantially To a limited extent Not at all
Pleaseprovideany additional commentsyou deemuseful ......
5) To what extent are your country's Europe 2020 objectives/targets appropriate for the territory administered by your regional/local authority? (you can consult them here as stated in the 2011 NRP[5])
Employment rate (in %) / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
R&D in % of GDP / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
CO2 emission reduction targets / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
Renewable energy / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
Energy efficiency (reduction of energy consumption in Mtoe) / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
Early school leaving (in %) / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
Tertiary education (in %) / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
Reduction of population at risk of poverty or social exclusion (number of persons) / Too ambitious Appropriate Not ambitious enough Irrelevant
Can't say
6) To reflect the specific situation of your territory, should other indicators and targets be used?
YES NO CAN'T SAY
If YES, what indicators? ......
7) To what extent has your country's 2011 National Reform Programme encouraged your regional/local authority to establish more ambitious policies goals/actions?
Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Pleaseprovideany additional commentsyou deemnecessary ......
8) To what extent was your authority involved in the recent 2012 annual revisions of the National Reform Programmes?
Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Please clarify and provide any additional comments you deem useful ......
9) To what extent your does the new 2012 National Reform Programme take sufficient account of your local needs?
Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Please clarify and provide any additional comments you deem useful ......
10) To what extent do the 2011 country-specific recommendations of the European Commission reflect your local/regional needs[6]?
Substantially To a limited extent Not at all Can't say
Please clarify and provide any additional comments you deem useful ......
11)What sources of funding do you use in implementing your local/regional actions related to Europe 2020 goals?
Please explain:
......
Feel free to make any suggestions about how to fund Europe 2020 (possibly including different uses of available EU, national, local or private funds):
......
12) In terms of funding, what should be improved? (Feel free to make any suggestions about how to fund Europe 2020, possibly including different uses of available EU, national, local or private funds)
Please explain ......
13) Did you have opportunities to design/implement Europe 2020 policies in partnership with your national government?
YES NO
If Yes, has this partnership been translated into written agreements with your National Government?
Please explain briefly how it works:
......
13) In November 2012, the European Commission will publish the 2013 Annual Growth Survey[7]. What should be the growth-related objectives for 2013?
......
14) Please add any comments or information you deem useful on Europe 2020
......

1) Title of the policy action
......
2) Brief description of the policy action (objectives, target group, expected outcome, timetable, funding, support from EU initiatives and programmes, website of the action, etc.)
Objectives:......
Planning period: ......
Launched in: ...... (please indicate month and year)
Website of the action: ......
Target group:......
Expected outcome:......
Funding:......
Support from EU initiatives and programmes:......
3)Did you design and/or implement your Europe 2020 policy action in coordination with:
The regional level? YES NO
Please specify their role and tasks: ......
National government? YES NO
Please specify their role and tasks: ......
The European level? YES NO
Please specify their role and tasks: ......
Other partners? YES NO
Please specify their role and tasks: ......
Other stakeholders? YES NO
Please specify their role and tasks: ......
4) How and which Europe 2020 Flagship Initiatives provide an opportunity for your region/city to implement the selected policy action more effectively?
......
5) How does your country's National Reform Programme provide an opportunity for your region/city to implement the selected policy action more effectively?
......
6) Please add comments or information you deem useful on this selected policy action (you may submit additional documents to ).
......

Thanks for your contribution!


Background information: basics and state of play of Europe 2020

The Europe 2020 strategy was launched by the European Council in June 2010. It aims to boost recovery after the economic crisis and put the EU on a path towards smart, sustainable and inclusive growth by 2020. Five headline targets have been set for the EU as a whole and seven Flagship Initiatives (Innovation Union, Youth on the move, a Digital agenda for Europe, Resource- efficient Europe, an Industrial policy for the globalisation era, an Agenda for new skills and jobs, and the European platform against poverty) have been launched to help the strategy achieve its goals. By the end of April 2012 EU national governments submitted their revised National Reform Programmes, setting out how they will implement Europe 2020 at national level. In 2011, NRPs set country targets contributing to the EU headline targets.

In June 2012, based on an assessment made by the European Commission, the European Council adopts country-specific recommendations not only on macroeconomic and fiscal policies but also on ways of making the most of the new strategy. Strict coordination between EU monitoring of macroeconomic and fiscal policies and policies addressing structural problems is at the core of the European semester, the new approach to economic policy coordination adopted by the EU which has been in place since January 2011. As part of this process, progress on both economic policy coordination and country achievements is assessed by the European Commission in the Annual Growth Survey, to be published before the end of the each year.

The Committee of the Regions is convinced that Europe 2020 will not achieve the expected results unless it is designed and implemented in partnership between all relevant government levels, through the adoption of multilevel governance tools. In fact, as local and regional authorities are heavily involved in delivering in almost all policy fields covered by Europe 2020, strong coordination and integration of policy actions by all government levels in these fields would make the most of the new strategy in an era of severe budgetary restraint. All European institutions support this view, and their leaders have encouraged the CoR proposal which is implemented through Territorial Pacts on Europe 2020, defined as "an agreement between a country's tiers of government (local, regional, national). Parties signing up to a Territorial Pact commit to coordinate and synchronise their policy agendas in order to focus their actions and financial resources on the Europe 2020 Strategy goals and targets".

While it is now up to the Member States' governments, cities and regions to adopt this approach, the EU has to support it, to show European citizens that Europe 2020 can make a difference. To this end, the CoR welcomed the European Commission Communication on the EU Budget Review (19 October 2010), whose proposals for the new Multi-annual Financial Framework, covering the period after 2013, include:

1) a Development and Investment Partnership Contract between the Commission and each Member State, "reflecting the commitments of partners at national and regional level" to support the implementation of the Europe 2020 National Reform Programmes, and

2) a Common Strategic Framework to increase the consistency of EUpolicies for the delivery of the Europe 2020 goals, replacing the current approach of separate sets of strategic guidelines for the Structural Funds, while at the same time identifying linkages and coordination mechanisms with other EU financial instruments.

The above ties in with the approach underlying the proposal of Territorial Pacts.

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[1] For more information: http://portal.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/news/Pages/TerritorialPacts2011.aspx.

[2] This annual report gives an account of how Europe 2020 is implemented on the ground, and the extent to which it is implemented in partnership by all tiers of government, ahead of the next European Commission Annual Growth Survey. The 2nd CoR Monitoring Report was adopted in December 2011: http://portal.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/news/Pages/2ndCoRMonitoringReportonEurope2020.aspx

[3] Privacy Statement The follow-up to your contribution requires that your personal data (name, contact details, etc.) be processed in a file. All the answers to the questions are voluntary. Your replies will be kept for a period of 5 years after the receipt of your questionnaire. Should you require any further information or wish to exercise your rights under Regulation (EC) No. 45/2001 (e.g. to access, rectify, or delete your data), please contact the data controller (Head of the Networks and Subsidiarity Unit) at . If necessary, you may also contact the CoR Data Protection Officer (). You have the right of recourse to the European Data Protection Supervisor at any time (www.edps.europa.eu). Please note that the questionnaire with your contribution and your contact details will be published online. Your questionnaire may be transmitted to CoR Rapporteurs and other EU institutions for information. Should you not agree to this, please inform us accordingly.

[4] If you are interested in joining the Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform, please visit: http://portal.cor.europa.eu/europe2020/Knowledge/Pages/BecomeaMember.aspx

[5] http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/pdf/targets_en.pdf.

[6] http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/reaching-the-goals/monitoring-progress/recommendations-2011/index_en.htm

[7] For 2012 Annual Growth Survey consult: http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/reaching-the-goals/monitoring-progress/annual-growth-surveys/index_en.htm