Debate: What role and aim for the European cohesion policy?

As the Lisbon Treaty came into force and the renewal of the teams at the various institutions is completed, thinking on the future EU budget and policies entered a more active phase. In line with the conclusions of the European Council in December 2005 on the budget review, Notre Europe has continued to insist that discussions should focus on the substance (the policies) before the form (the budget allocations).

Following its analysis of the Barca Report last June, Notre Europe considers that the time has come to launch a wide-ranging debate on the cohesion policy, its role in the EU integration, its objectives and its tools.

To this end, Notre Europe invites several prominent scholars and EU observers to respond freely to the paper put forward by Dirk Ahner, Director General of DG REGIO at the European Commission, What do you know about European cohesion policy ? 

In this paper, the author aims to conduct a complete and historical review of the political vision and the economic basis that underlie the cohesion policy. He seeks to deconstruct certain false ideas and to analyse, step by step, how the structural funds' delivery mechanisms and regulations may transform the subsidiarity principle into a creative synergy. 

The debate is open. Other experts' contributions will be added in the coming weeks.