Committee o the Press release Regions

COR/03/27 Brussels, 20 March 2003

European governance and the role of local and regional authorities in promoting better lawmaking in Europe

Seminar organised by the CoR at Ilioupoli, Greece - Monday, 31 March 2003

On Monday, 31 March 2003, the Committee of the Regions (CoR) is organising a seminar at Ilioupoli, Greece, on European governance: and the role of local and regional authorities in promoting better lawmaking in Europe. This seminar, which is being organised on the occasion of the Greek presidency of the Council and in collaboration with the Greek Ministry of the Interior and Public Administration and the Ilioupoli City Council, will bring together members of the CoR's Commission for Constitutional Affairs and European Governance and a number of leading political figures, such as: Mr Apostolos Kaklamanis, President of the Greek Parliament, Mr Kostas Skandalidis, Greek Minister of the Interior and Public Administration, Mr Petros Efthimiou, Greek Minister of National Education, and Mr Theodoros Georgakis, the Mayor of Ilioupolis, who is hosting the seminar. The has pinpointed reform of European governance as one of its four strategic objectives. With a view to achieving this objective, the European Commission has issued a White Paper on European Governance which examines the way in which the EU uses the powers vested in it by the people of the EU. This document concerns local and regional authorities, regions, cities and civil society more than any other level of authority. For this reason, the CoR is preparing an opinion on the follow-up to the White Paper on European governance. The rapporteur for this opinion is Mr Michel Delebarre- FR/PES. With a view to providing material for this opinion, a roundtable will be organised, based on an examination of a number of examples of good practice in European governance. Two of the issues to be addressed by the roundtable will be local democracy and the prospects for civil society. The proceedings will be brought to a close by Mr Franz Schausberger (-EPP), Governor of and First vice- president of the CoR's Commission for Constitutional Affairs and European Governance.

Practical information: − Venue for the meeting: Conference Centre, 86-88 Marinou Antypa Street, 163 46 ILIOUPOLI, GREECE − Date of the meeting: Monday, 31 March , from 9.30 a.m. to 2 p.m. − Press conference: Monday, 31 March, from 11a.m. to 11.30 a.m. − Contact person: Mrs Lambrini Yalamboukidou, Press Office of the Committee of the Regions, tel.: 00 32 2 282 21 54 , mobile: 00 32 478 22 51 30

http://www.cor.eu.int Rue Montoyer 92-102 - 1000 Bruxelles Tel. +32 (0) 2 282 21 55 - Fax +32 (0) 2 282 20 85

Http://www.cor.eu.int Rue Montoyer 92-102 - 1000 Bruxelles Tel. +32 (0) 2 282 21 55 - Fax +32 (0) 2 282 20 85