EU regional and cohesion policy is an investment policy. Via various funding programmes, it supports job creation, competitiveness, economic growth, improved quality of life and sustainable development. These investments contribute to the delivery of the Europe 2020 strategy. Regional policy also aims to reduce the economic, social and territorial disparities between Europe’s regions.
The overall regional and cohesion policy framework is established for a period of 7 years. The current period covers the years 2014-2020. Funding for regional and cohesion policy and the thematic objectives and priorities for investment, along with the financial allocations for each Member State (MS), are agreed at the beginning of each programming period.
For the period 2014-2020, € 351, 8 billion will be available for MS to invest in 11 thematic objectives, all stemming from the Europe 2020 strategy e.g.: research, ICT, sustainable transport, SMEs, renewable energy and energy efficiency, environment, employment and education. The selected thematic objectives (and for each a summary of the main results expected from each of the European Structural and Investment Funds – ESI), the indicative allocation of support by the EU (by thematic objective at national level for each of the ESI Funds), as well as the total indicative amount of support envisaged for climate change objectives shall be set out in Partnership Agreements (PAs) to be submitted to the European Commission by 22 April 2014. Member States’ PAs are due to be adopted by the end of August 2014. Operational Programmes (OPs) shall be submitted by Member States at the latest 3 months following the submission of the PAs and are due to be adopted by end of January 2015.
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Funds can only be classed as from the EU when they are from the EU & not from your own tax payers back pockets. Why do you continue to call this money EU money? It is not it is simply some of our own money returned to be spent on projects that the EU deems fit for our money. Just as citizens are best placed to spend their own money EU member states too are best placed to spend their own money. No country should be leeching of others, no country should be net recipient of funds from the collective EU budget. The UK always paid in even when it was on an IMF program in the 70’s & we were on a 3 day week with the lights going out 3 times a day so there is no common sense reason for countries like Poland to be living off the backs of other member states. The only country that benefits from subsidies paid to Poland is Germany because they are sat on their doorstep.