Committee of the Regions
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The Committee of the Regions (CoR) is a body of the European Union (EU) established in 1994. It represents the sub-national regions of the EU in the EU legislative process, but only in a consultative manner similar to the Economic and Social Committee.
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[edit] Aim
The CoR is the political assembly that provides local and regional authorities with a voice at the heart of the European Union. It aims at increasing the participation of European regions in community life. The CoR, whose seat is in Brussels, is composed of 344 representatives of regional and local governments.
Cohesion with the regions of the EU was enshrined in the Single European Act in 1986 and in 1992 the Delors Commission proposed the establishment of the CoR. It was included in the Maastricht Treaty and established when it came into force in 1994.
The body was set up to address two main issues. Firstly, about three quarters of EU legislation is implemented at local or regional level, so it makes sense for local and regional representatives to have a say in the development of new EU laws. Secondly, there were concerns that the public was being left behind as the EU steamed ahead. Involving the elected level of government closest to the citizens was one way of closing the gap.
[edit] Scope
The Treaties oblige the European Commission and Council to consult the Committee of the Regions whenever new proposals are made in areas that have repercussions at regional or local level. The Maastricht Treaty set out 5 such areas - economic and social cohesion, trans-European infrastructure networks, health, education and culture. The Amsterdam Treaty added another five areas to the list - employment policy, social policy, the environment, vocational training and transport - which now covers much of the scope of the EU's activity.
Outside these areas, the Commission, Council and European Parliament have the option to consult the CoR on issues if they see important regional or local implications to a proposal. The CoR can also draw up an opinion on its own initiative, which enables it to put issues on the EU agenda. On certain issues it works in partnership with the Economic and Social Committee.
The CoR gains the right to approach the Court of Justice once the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force (article 8, Protocol on Transitional Provisions [1])
[edit] Composition
CoR has 344 members – the number from each EU country roughly reflecting the size of its population. The numbers per country are as follows:
| State | Members | State | Members | State | Members |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Germany |
24 |  Czech Republic |
12 |  Finland |
9 |
 United Kingdom |
24 | .svg/22px-Flag_of_Belgium_(civil).svg.png){kind=small} Belgium |
12 |  Ireland |
9 |
 France |
24 |  Hungary |
12 |  Lithuania |
9 |
 Italy |
24 |  Portugal |
12 |  Latvia |
7 |
 Spain |
21 |  Sweden |
12 |  Slovenia |
7 |
 Poland |
21 |  Bulgaria |
12 |  Estonia |
7 |
 Romania |
15 |  Austria |
12 |  Cyprus |
6 |
 Netherlands |
12 |  Slovakia |
9 |  Luxembourg |
6 |
 Greece |
12 |  Denmark |
9 |  Malta |
5 |
| TOTAL | 344 | ||||
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Committee of the Regions
- List of Members
- The committee of the Regions : European Navigator
- Subsidiarity Monitoring Network of the Committee of the Regions
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