The changes aim to accelerate investment at national and regional level, by simplifying access to grants, supporting people hit by the crisis and increasing the availability of finance for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Over 65% (€230 billion) of cohesion policy funding is earmarked for investment in the four priority areas of the EU growth and jobs strategy – people (jobs), business, infrastructure and energy, and research and innovation.
Faster, more flexible funding
Proposals permitting faster, more flexible payments, lump sum and flat rate payments should accelerate project implementation, particularly for infrastructure, energy and environment projects, says the report.
MEPs also welcome a Commission plan to increase advance payments, so as to get funding to projects earlier and reduce the need for bank loans. However, they also urge banks to "make full use of facilities granted to them to maintain lending to the economy and pass on key interest rate reductions to borrowers".
Playing by EU rules
The Commission and Member States must ensure that measures to make structural funding faster, simpler and more flexible "do not diminish their responsibility to control implementation", says the report, which also calls on Member States and regional and local authorities to "secure their contributions, as required by the co-financing rules, so that funds allocated by the EU structural funds can be fully exploited".
The Commission is also urged to monitor Member State measures, so as to "ensure that these do not violate free market competition, social standards and the implementation of Community environmental and climate protection requirements".
Backing business, creating jobs
The committee calls for "decisive action to support the demand side of the economy, as well as measures to assist SMEs, social economy enterprises, and local and regional authorities". It also calls on Member States to make "wide use of structural funds to secure job creation and to promote SMEs, entrepreneurship, and professional training".
Financial engineering
The report encourages Member States to "explore synergies" between cohesion funding and other EU sources of funding (such as the R&D framework programme) as well as the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. It also urges them to simplify SME access to EU financial engineering instruments such as JESSICA (cities), JASMINE (micro-credit) and JEREMIE (micro to medium enterprises).
Energy efficiency of housing
A proposal that investments in energy efficiency, energy interconnections and renewable energies in the housing sector should be eligible for European Regional Development Fund funding throughout the EU is welcomed by the committee, which urges Member States and regions to make comprehensive use of this forthcoming new possibility.
