Horizontal Principles

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European UnionRegional Policy – Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion

EU Cohesion Policy 2014-2020

Information sessions March 2012

Horizontal principles

Agnes Kelemen and Rachel Lancry

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Structure of presentation

• General principles and compliance with Union and national law

• Partnership and multi-level governance• Promotion of equality between men and

women and non-discrimination • Sustainable development

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General principles and compliance with Union and national law

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General principles (CPR Articles 4, 6)

• Multi-annuality, complementarity and consistency with Union policies and priorities, coordination amongst CSF funds and other policies

• Appropriate territorial level, Institutional, legal and financial framework of the Member State

• Proportionality• Shared management (except CEF, innovative

actions, TA by Commission)• Sound financial management, effectiveness• Reduction of administrative burden• Compliance with Union and national law

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Partnership and multi-level governance

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Partnership and multi-level governance

Need to strengthen partnership principle:

• More legitimacy to the decision-making process.

• A wider range of expertise and knowledge • Key instrument of collective commitment

and ownership• Development of institutional capacity at

sector and territorial levels

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Article 5 of the CPR

• Obligation for MS to organise a partnership with relevant partners

• Competent regional, local, urban and other public authorities

• Economic and social partners• Bodies representing civil society

• Involvement of partners in all the stages of the “policy cycle”

• Introduction of a European Code of Conduct

• Annual consultation by the Commission of the organisations representing the partners at Union level

Vertical partnership

Horizontal partnership

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Partnership in the ESF regulation

• Possibility to involve social partners and NGOs through global grants

• In the less developed regions or in the MS eligible for the Cohesion Fund:– appropriate amount of ESF resources for

capacity-building activities and to activities jointly undertaken by social partners

– appropriate amount of ESF resources for capacity-building of NGOs

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The European Code of Conduct

• A double objective and a double nature

• Sets out objectives and criteria to support the implementation of partnerships

• Facilitates sharing of information and good practices among Member States

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Promotion of equality between men and women and non-discrimination

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Promotion of equality between men and women and non-discrimination

• Horizontal principle of the regulations

• Ex-ante conditionalities

• Programming

• Implementation and monitoring

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Horizontal principle (CPR 7)

The Member States and Commission shall ensure that equality between men and women and the integration of the gender perspective is promoted in the preparation and implementation of programmes.

The Member States and Commission shall take appropriate steps to prevent any discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation during the preparation and implementation of programmes.

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Ex-ante conditionalities (CPR Annex IV)

To ensure that the necessary conditions for effective support are in place.

Relevant ex-ante conditionality provisions:• Promoting social inclusion and combating poverty: strategy for

poverty reduction including disadvantaged groups, national Roma inclusion strategy

• Anti-discrimination: existence of mechanism to ensure effective implementation and application of Directives 2000/78/EC and 2000/43/EC.

• Gender equality: existence of a strategy for the promotion of gender equality and a mechanism which ensures its effective implementation.

• Disability: existence of a mechanism which ensures effective implementation and application of the UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities.

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Programming

• Partnership contract to contain specific information on horizontal principles, partnership, target groups at highest risk of discrimination or exclusion (CPR 14)

• Operational programme to contain description of specific actions to promote equal opportunities, prevent discrimination, requirements of ensuring accessibility for disabled persons, description of contribution to promoting of equality between men and women and integration of gender perspective (CPR 87(3)(ii) & (iii))

• Opinion of national equality bodies on the measures set out in the OP under CPR 87(3)(ii) & (iii)

• Ex-ante evaluation to appraise adequacy of planned measures to promote equal opportunities bewteen men and women and to prevent discrimination (CPR 48)

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Implementation and monitoring

• Functions of Programme Monitoring Committee to include examination of actions to promote equality and non-discrimination, including accessibility (CPR Article 100)

• Functions of the Managing Authority to include drawing up and applying selection procedures that are non-discriminatory and transparent and take into account the general principles (CPR Article 114)

• Joint Action Plans to contain analysis of effects on prevention of discrimination (CPR 95)

• Annual Implementation reports for 2017 and 2019 to set out and assess actions to promote equality and prevent discrimination, including accessibility (CPR Article 101).

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Sustainable development

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Sustainable Development in the regulatory proposal

• in the framework of sustainable development • promotion of the aim of protecting and improving the

environment, as set out in Article 11 • taking into account the polluter pays principle• environmental protection, resource efficiency,

climate change mitigation and adaptation, disaster resilience and risk prevention and management

• in the preparation and implementation • Partnership Contracts and programmes • information on the support for climate change

objectives

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Sustainable Development and environment in the Treaty

Article 3.3 TEUIt shall work for the sustainable development of Europe based on balanced economic growth and price stability, a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress, and a high level of protection and improvement of the quality of the environment.

Article 11 TFEUEnvironmental protection requirements must be integrated into the definition and implementation of the Union policies and activities, in particular with a view to promoting sustainable development.

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Polluter pays principle

Art 191.2 TFEUHowever, exceptions:• If costs are deemed disproportionate for the public

authorities of a MS then derogation of EU support from Cohesion Fund (Article 192.5)

• Other EU legislation may also allow for exceptions (Art 9 WFD)

• It may be impossible to identify the polluter or to identify legal liability (polluted industrial sites)

• For some (not directly environment related activities) environmental costs not fully internalised (e.g. transport, however, Transport White Paper 2011 sets “Move towards full application of user pays and polluter pays principles” as goal)

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Principles in the regulatory proposal related to SD

Institutional requirements:• Environmental partners (Art 5.1 c)• Monitoring Committee to examine actions to promote

SD (Art 100)

Procedural requirements:• Compliance with EU and national law (including

environmental) (Art 6)

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Environment and climate change in cohesion policy 2014-

2020 :

– Funding of investments in the area of environment,

climate change and energy

– Ex-ante conditionalities

– Horizontal integration of environment and climate change

across all activities

Mainstreaming of SD in the regulatory proposal

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Funding for SD (1)Financial support for:

• Supporting the shift towards a low carbon economy in all sectors:– Production and distribution of RE– EE and RE in SMEs– EE and RE in public infrastructures (ERDF and CF) and residential buildings

(only ERDF)– Smart distribution systems– Low-carbon strategies for urban areas

• Climate change adaptation, risk prevention and management:– Adaptation to climate change– Investments to address risks

• Protecting the environment and promoting resource efficiency:– Investment in the waste sector– Investment in the water sector– Protecting biodiversity, soil protection an promoting ecosystem services,

including N2K and green infrastructure– Action to improve the urban environment including brownfield sites and air

pollution

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Minimum share of ERDF investments on:• shift towards a low carbon economy

• research & innovation• competitiveness of SMEs

6%

Less developed regionsMore developed & transition regions

80%

20%

50%

6%

No more ceiling for investing in EE in housing (currently maximum 4% of ERDF)

Minimum EUR 17 bn for LCE in 2014-2020

(increase from 2007-2013 EUR when 9.3 bn spent on EE and RE)

Funding for SD (2)

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Conditionalities

• to enhance the effectiveness of funding• Two types: thematic and horizontal to be fulfilled by 2016 the

latest• In Annex IV• Examples of thematic ex-ante conditionalities:

– Implementation of minimum requirements related to the EPBD

– Establishing system of certification for EE– Transparent support schemes for RE– Recovery of cost of water services– Adoption of river basin management plans– Waste management plans established, necessary measures

taken to meet targets on re-use and recycling• Examples of general ex-ante conditionalities:

– Complete and correct transposition of EIA and SEA directives

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Provisions in the proposal to integrate SD (1)

CSF (Art 9-10)• Key actions to be supported for each thematic objective• Horizontal principles (including SD)

Partnership Contracts (Art 14)• Ex-ante evaluations, including SEA where appropriate• Indicative allocation by thematic objective, including total

indicative amount for climate change• Horizontal principles• Milestones and targets• An assessment of fulfilment of ex-ante conditionalities

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Operational Programmes (Art 24 and 87)• Thematic objective, investment priorities, financial appropriations,

indicators to assess progress• Actions and timetable to fulfil ex-ante conditionalities• Actions to take account of principles set out in Art 7 and 8• A description of specific actions to take into account environmental

protection requirements, resource-efficiency, climate change mitigation and adaptation, disaster resilience and risk prevention and management in the selection of operations

• Actions taken to involve partners and their role• Modulation of co-financing rates at level of priority axis (Art 111)

Projects• Major projects have to undergo EIA and CC mitigation and adaptation

assessment (Art 91)• Operations finance to comply with Union and national law (including

environment) (Art 6)

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Environment in evaluation and reporting • Annual implementation reports (financial data, indicators,

targets, milestones, ex-ante conditionalities)• Progress report (contribution to EU 2020, support used for

climate change objectives (Rio markers), ex-ante conditionalities, role of partners)

• Ex-ante evaluation (contribution to sustainable growth, SEA) • Obligatory output indicators for ERDF and Cohesion Fund, e.g.:

– MW additional RE capacity, – Number of households with improved energy consumption

classification, – kWh/yr decrease of primary energy consumption in public

buildings, – Number of energy users connected to smart grids,– tCO2e GHG emission reduction


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Thank you for your attention!

Documents

Horizontal Principles