Brussels, 16 December 2024
On Monday, negotiating teams from the European Parliament and the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU reached a provisional agreement on a Border Regions’ Instrument for Development and Growth (“BRIDGEforEU”) in order to find cross-border solutions to administrative and legal obstacles in border regions.
To resolve administrative and legal issues involving cross-border infrastructure or public services that make citizens’ lives more difficult and hold back economic growth, the proposal would empower regional or local authorities and private bodies to flag cross-border obstacles to coordination points set up by member states that wish to participate.
After assessing the problem and underlying reasons, the coordination point can use a number of voluntary tools (including ones foreseen by international agreements) to address the obstacle. For example, it can contact the national competent authorities and notify them of the issue, so that they can evaluate which administrative changes within their remit could resolve the issue.
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After the vote, rapporteur Sandro Gozi (Renew, France) said:
Today’s deal is an unprecedented victory for border regions and their citizens, whose lives and opportunities are hampered by outdated bureaucratic walls. Through BRIDGEforEU, we provide local authorities and private bodies with a voluntary framework they can use to signal cross-border obstacles, and to request or propose a solution. This was the key purpose of the Parliament initiative in 2023: building bridges among territories and communities, and contributing to vibrant labour markets, easier access to essential cross-border public services, and increasing economic and social cohesion.
Background
Around 150 million Europeans live in a border region. The European Parliament estimates that cross-border administrative and legal obstacles amount to a yearly loss of 457 billion euros at EU level, while the European Commission estimates that removing 20 % of current obstacles would boost EU GDP by 2 %.
The Commission made its original proposal for a mechanism to resolve cross-border legal and administrative obstacles in May 2018. Although the European Parliament adopted its position in February 2019, the Council did not find a general approach on the proposal, leaving it in limbo.
In September 2023, MEPs adopted a legislative initiative report seeking to break the deadlock on the proposal. The text proposed Cross-border Coordination Points and Cross-border Committees as a possible solution. In December 2023, the Commission proposed an amended version of the law, taking up key parts of the Parliament’s proposals and leading to the present negotiations.
Next steps
Before it can enter into law, the proposal needs to be formally adopted by both Parliament and Council.
EU Council on the new instrument to promote the development of cross-border regions (BRIDGEforEU)
17 December 2024
The Council presidency and European Parliament negotiators today reached a provisional agreement on a new Border Regions’ Instrument for Development and Growth in the EU – BRIDGEforEU.
The regulation on the instrument seeks to support the development of cross-border regions by making it easier to find solutions to their challenges, such as infrastructure development and the management of cross-border public services.
According to the provisional agreement, the new legal framework will complement existing possibilities and cover the land border regions of neighbouring member states, as well as maritime borders.
Member states will be free to decide whether to set up cross-border coordination points responsible for handling cross-border files and how to resolve cross-border obstacles. Those member states who do not wish to set up cross-border coordination points will have limited reporting obligations. Island member states will be exempt from these requirements.
Although the regulation will not apply to border regions with third countries, it opens up the possibility for member states to set up equivalent procedural frameworks under national law to address cross-border issues in their cooperation with third countries.
The co-legislators have also agreed that only public or private law entities would be able to initiate cross-border files, while natural persons would not be able to do so.
Next steps
The provisional agreement will now need to be endorsed by both institutions in their entirety and undergo legal-linguistic revision before formal adoption.
Member states’ EU ambassadors will be invited to confirm the agreement at their meeting on 20 December.
Commission welcomes the agreement on new legislation to ease administrative and legal cross-border obstacles – BRIDGEforEU
Brussels, 17 December 2024
The European Commission welcomes the Parliament and Council agreement, reached yesterday evening, on the new Border Regions’ Instrument for Development and Growth in the EU – BRIDGEforEU.
The Regulation supports the development of border regions, home to over 150 million EU citizens, by introducing a standard procedure to identify and resolve cross-border obstacles that make it difficult for citizens and businesses to benefit from full EU integration. Citizens, businesses, and public administrations in these regions face challenges linked to different technical standards, administrative procedures, and legal frameworks, at both sides of the borders. This affects the deployment of cross-border infrastructure or public services projects, such as access to healthcare and emergency services, disaster response coordination, or joint infrastructure projects. Addressing these barriers will improve the functioning of the EU Single Market and provide better access to services and economic opportunities for citizens and businesses.
The Regulation includes the possibility to establish Cross-Border Coordination Points, a new service which will assess requests from local stakeholders on potential obstacles, and act as a liaison with the national authorities to address them. Interested parties will receive a formal response explaining whether and how an obstacle can be resolved.
After an obstacle is assessed and recognised, Member States and regions can use the Cross-Border Facilitation Tool, a voluntary standard procedure designed to solve administrative and legal obstacles. While each request must be answered to, the decision on whether or not to resolve an obstacle remains the prerogative of the competent national authorities.
The Commission will also set up a public register of obstacles, collecting data from Member States on cross-border issues at land and sea borders. This register will give greater visibility to these obstacles and enable the Commission to support Member States in resolving them through the sharing of information and knowledge.
Next steps
The Parliament and the Council will formally adopt the agreement reached during the trilogue negotiations and the Regulation will enter into force early next year.
Background
On 12 December 2023, the Commission adopted its amended proposal for a Regulation facilitating cross-border solutions. This proposal builds on past initiatives to address cross-border challenges.
In 2021, the Commission published the report “EU Border Regions: Living labs of European Integration”, reflecting on lessons learnt during the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2018, the Commission launched b-solutions, an innovative and temporary initiative providing legal support to public authorities in cross-border regions to identify the root causes of legal or administrative obstacles and to explore possible solutions. The experience of the b-solutions has been instrumental to analyse and identify legal and administrative cross-border obstacles and has shown that in more than one third of the obstacles identified, a new legal tool, established at EU level, could have been used to resolve these obstacles.
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This agreement marks an important step forward for cooperation and development in EU border regions. The Regulation establishes a coordinated process to address cross-border challenges, amplifies the voices of local stakeholders, and ensures equal access to solutions for all Member States. This is a concrete improvement in the daily lives of the millions of European citizens living in these areas.
Source – EU Commission