DOCSLIB.ORG

Consultation Procedures European States

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Consultation Procedures European States European states within Printed on 100% recycled paper - Design: studiogoffin.be - September 2007 paper - Design: studiogoffin.be Printed on 100% recycled Brussels Paris 1, Square De Meeûs 15, rue de Richelieu 1000 Brussels 75001 Paris tel. : + 32 2 511 74 77 tel. : + 33 1 44 50 59 59 fax : + 32 2 511 09 49 fax : + 33 1 44 50 59 60 Consultationwithin procedures [ e-mail : [email protected] www.ccre.org European states Consultation procedures [ An assessment of the systems for consultation With the financial support of the European Commission. between central governments and the national Sole responsibility lies with the author. associations of local and regional government The Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein Table of Contents Introduction ................................ 3 Luxembourg ........................... 129 Albania ........................................ 9 FYR of Macedonia .................. 135 Austria ....................................... 15 Malta ....................................... 141 Belgium ..................................... 23 Montenegro ........................... 145 Bulgaria ..................................... 33 The Netherlands ..................... 151 Cyprus ....................................... 41 Norway .................................... 159 Czech Republic ......................... 45 Poland ..................................... 165 Denmark ................................... 51 Portugal .................................. 173 Estonia ...................................... 57 Romania .................................. 179 Finland ...................................... 63 Serbia ...................................... 185 France ........................................ 71 Slovakia ................................... 191 Germany ................................... 77 Slovenia ................................... 197 Greece ....................................... 83 Spain ....................................... 203 Hungary .................................... 91 Sweden ................................... 211 Iceland ....................................... 97 Switzerland ............................. 217 Ireland ..................................... 103 Ukraine ................................... 221 Italy ......................................... 109 United Kingdom ..................... 225 Latvia ....................................... 117 A Synthesis ............................. 233 Lithuania ................................. 123 / 1 Introduction In our complex, fast-changing 21st century societies, the concept of “multi- level governance” becomes increasingly recognized. In other words, neither the European Union, nor national governments alone, can successfully address the issues and problems which confront Europe’s citizens. The role of local and regional government becomes increasingly important, whether in implementing legislation that has been passed by the European Community or national governments, or as partners in implementing national policies which require a joint commitment, e.g. on social inclusion, economic development or climate change. This concept of partnership was recently (March 2007) and explicitly recognized by the EU’s Heads of State and Government, in their Berlin Declaration, marking the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome: There are many goals which we cannot achieve on our own, but only in concert. Tasks are shared between the European Union, the Member States and their regions and local authorities. But if local and regional government are to perform their tasks effectively, and if this partnership between all levels is to be successful, effective consultation procedures are absolutely essential. That is why the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) decided to compile and publish this book, which sets out and evaluates the current procedures for consultation by central governments, on national and EU issues, in 35 countries of our membership. In 2001, we published a similar study on the national procedures then in place, in 15 countries. This time (2007) we have widened the geographical scope of our study, and also included information on national procedures for consultation on European issues. Readers will note that the arrangements for consulting local and regional government on EU affairs (for Member States) are still in most cases absent or minimalist, leaving much room for improvement in the coming years. Since local and regional government are responsible for the implementation of a large proportion of EU legislation and policies, their input is particularly important, and CEMR believes that central governments must do more to involve the local and regional levels, and listen to their views, when developing their national positions on draft European legislation. / 3 The European dimension This publication does not deal with the European Union’s own consultation procedures, which are variable in quality depending on the subject and the responsible directorate of the European Commission. Indeed, this mirrors the national experience in many countries, in which the ministry responsible for local or regional government may consult quite often and well, whilst other ministries – whose legislation also has major consequences for the territorial authorities – ignore or minimize the need for consultation. This is why, coming together at European level, the national associations of local and regional government have long sought to formalize and enhance the consultation procedures conducted by the European institutions, especially the Commission. So having lobbied hard on this point, we in CEMR were pleased that the EU Constitutional Treaty set out some new and important points on consultation, and the need to take account of the local and regional dimension in drafting new legislation. Once it became clear to us that the Constitutional Treaty might not proceed, we have worked to ensure that these provisions should be included in any future Treaty, and the draft Reform Treaty – at the time of writing this Introduction (summer 2007) – indeed does maintain all of the points that are important for Europe’s local and regional authorities and their associations. But if the EU has been somewhat tardy in formally recognizing the role of local and regional government, and the need for consultation, the Council of Europe had already, in 1985, recognized the importance of consultation in the European Charter of Local Self-Government, now ratified by all EU Member States as well as about 20 others. Article 4(6) states, in particular: Local authorities shall be consulted, insofar as possible, in due time and in an appropriate way in the planning and decision-making processes for all matters which concern them directly. As regards financial issues, Article 9(6) provides: Local authorities shall be consulted, in an appropriate manner, on the way in which redistributed resources are to be allocated to them. But even the European Charter needs to be strengthened and updated in this regard. Article 4 above does not expressly refer to consultation on draft legislation (though we would argue that it does so apply), and Article 9(6) 4 \ refers to only one aspect of local government finances, vital though the issue of redistribution is. Moreover, whilst requiring consultation in general terms it does not require there to be any agreed formal procedure, within each country, under which consultation should take place. If and when the Charter falls to be reviewed, perhaps by adding new Protocols, a strengthened and specific measure on consultation procedures should be added. Lessons and conclusions After the analysis of the situation in each country, which now follows, readers will find a synthesis drafted by our researcher for this publication, David Farge, CEMR Project Officer. This draws out some of the key trends and comparisons between the different national situations. In general terms, for CEMR there are three key points to highlight. (1) The importance of effective, timely consultation of local and regional government and in particular of their associations. In many countries, there is a specific process for consulting local and regional government, whose specific role is understood and recognized. In other countries, however, local government is seen not as a privileged governmental partner, but is the same way as other associations of civil society. We strongly believe that a specific partnership role and procedure needs to be adopted, in every country, for the associations of local and regional government. (2) The need for a strictly defined framework, giving adequate time for responses and input. In more and more countries, there is now a clear procedure, laid down by or under legislation, or agreed in a formal manner with the national government. In general terms, CEMR would support the adoption of a legally binding process, wherever this is needed. If the consultation procedure is based on an agreement between the national association(s) and central government, it is vital that this agreement is not time-limited to the life-span of a particular government, but is accepted as an ongoing part of national governance. The degree of detail is a matter for national agreement – some associations prefer a somewhat more flexible process, whilst others need a more detailed one to ensure effective consultation. Above all, the timescale for local and regional government to respond to central government proposals
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Fertility and Modernity*
    Fertility and Modernity Enrico Spolaore Romain Wacziarg Tufts University and NBER UCLA and NBER May 2021 Abstract We investigate the determinants of the fertility decline in Europe from 1830 to 1970 using a newly constructed dataset of linguistic distances between European regions. We …nd that the fertility decline resulted from a gradual di¤usion of new fertility behavior from French-speaking regions to the rest of Europe. We observe that societies with higher education, lower infant mortality, higher urbanization, and higher population density had lower levels of fertility during the 19th and early 20th century. However, the fertility decline took place earlier and was initially larger in communities that were culturally closer to the French, while the fertility transition spread only later to societies that were more distant from the cultural frontier. This is consistent with a process of social in‡uence, whereby societies that were linguistically and culturally closer to the French faced lower barriers to learning new information and adopting new behavior and attitudes regarding fertility control. Spolaore: Department of Economics, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155-6722, [email protected]. Wacziarg: UCLA Anderson School of Management, 110 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles CA 90095, [email protected]. We thank Quamrul Ashraf, Guillaume Blanc, John Brown, Matteo Cervellati, David De La Croix, Gilles Duranton, Alan Fernihough, Raphael Franck, Oded Galor, Raphael Godefroy, Michael Huberman, Yannis Ioannides, Noel Johnson, David Le Bris, Monica Martinez-Bravo, Jacques Melitz, Deborah Menegotto, Omer Moav, Luigi Pascali, Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Nico Voigtländer, Joachim Voth, Susan Watkins, David Yanagizawa-Drott as well as participants at numerous seminars and conferences for useful comments.
    [Show full text]
  • Insular Autonomy: a Framework for Conflict Settlement? a Comparative Study of Corsica and the Åland Islands
    INSULAR AUTONOMY: A FRAMEWORK FOR CONFLICT SETTLEMENT? A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CORSICA AND THE ÅLAND ISLANDS Farimah DAFTARY ECMI Working Paper # 9 October 2000 EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR MINORITY ISSUES (ECMI) Schiffbruecke 12 (Kompagnietor Building) D-24939 Flensburg . Germany % +49-(0)461-14 14 9-0 fax +49-(0)461-14 14 9-19 e-mail: [email protected] internet: http://www.ecmi.de ECMI Working Paper # 9 European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) Director: Marc Weller Issue Editors: Farimah Daftary and William McKinney © European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) 2000. ISSN 1435-9812 i The European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) is a non-partisan institution founded in 1996 by the Governments of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Federal Republic of Germany, and the German State of Schleswig-Holstein. ECMI was established in Flensburg, at the heart of the Danish-German border region, in order to draw from the encouraging example of peaceful coexistence between minorities and majorities achieved here. ECMI’s aim is to promote interdisciplinary research on issues related to minorities and majorities in a European perspective and to contribute to the improvement of inter-ethnic relations in those parts of Western and Eastern Europe where ethno- political tension and conflict prevail. ECMI Working Papers are written either by the staff of ECMI or by outside authors commissioned by the Centre. As ECMI does not propagate opinions of its own, the views expressed in any of its publications are the sole responsibility of the author concerned. ECMI Working Paper # 9 European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) © ECMI 2000 CONTENTS I.
    [Show full text]
  • Country Report: France
    Country Report: France 2020 Update 2020 Update Acknowledgements & Methodology The 2020 update of this report was written by Laurent Delbos and Claire Tripier at Forum réfugiés – Cosi and edited by ECRE. Forum réfugiés-Cosi wishes to thank all those individuals and organisations who shared their expertise to contribute or check the information gathered during the research. Particular thanks are owed to many Forum réfugiés-Cosi colleagues who have shared their practical experience on the right of asylum in France – which have been key to feed concrete reality-checks and observations into this report; to the two lawyers who have taken the time to share their views on the French system; to the staff of France terre d’asile, the Anafé and the UNHCR Paris office for their expert and constructive feedback provided for the initial report and finally to ECRE for its support throughout the drafting process. Forum réfugiés- Cosi would also like to thank the European Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) for co-financing its awareness-raising missions which allowed us to provide additional time to research and draft this report. The findings presented in this report stem from background desk research, interviews with field practitioners and lawyers, as well as feedback from French NGOs and the Paris-based UNHCR office and finally statistics shared by the French authorities. Caveat: In France, asylum policies – including reception procedures – are largely under prefectural execution. This review of practice is mostly based on observations in the departments of Ile de France, Rhône, Puy-de-Dôme, Haute- Garonne and Alpes-Maritimes. However, the conclusions presented in this report on the concrete implementation of asylum policies have been cross-checked and triangulated with observations of these practices in other regions and are supported by findings presented in other reports – be they official or drafted by civil society organisations.
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Land Redistribution: Evidence from the French Revolution
    The Effects of Land Redistribution: Evidence from the French Revolution ∗ Theresa Finley † Raphaël Franck ‡ Noel D. Johnson § Susquehanna University Hebrew University of Jerusalem George Mason University This Version: June 17, 2018 Abstract: This study exploits the confiscation and auctioning off of Church property that occurred during the French Revolution to assess the role played by transaction costs in delaying the reallocation of property rights in the aftermath of fundamental institutional reform. French districts with a greater proportion of land redistributed during the Revolution experienced higher levels of agricultural productivity in 1841 and 1852 as well as more investment in irrigation and more efficient land use. We trace these increases in productivity to an increase in land inequality associated with the Revolutionary auction process. We also show how the benefits associated with the head-start given to districts with more Church land initially, and thus greater land redistribution by auction during the Revolution, dissipated over the course of the nineteenth century as other districts gradually overcame the transaction costs associated with reallocating the property rights associated with the feudal system. Keywords: Institutions, Property Rights, French Revolution, Coase Theorem JEL Codes: N53, O43, P14, D47 ∗We are grateful for comments from Philip Hoffman, Mark Koyama, James Robinson, Jean-Laurent Rosenthal, Nic Ziebarth, and participants in the January 2017 George Mason University Workshop on Economic History and Development as well as seminar participants at Wake Forest University. We acknowledge travel and research support from the Ben Porath Fund & the Department of Economics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. All remaining errors are the fault of the Authors.
    [Show full text]
  • Exploring Occitan and Francoprovençal in Rhône-Alpes, France Michel Bert, Costa James
    What counts as a linguistic border, for whom, and with what implications? Exploring Occitan and Francoprovençal in Rhône-Alpes, France Michel Bert, Costa James To cite this version: Michel Bert, Costa James. What counts as a linguistic border, for whom, and with what implications? Exploring Occitan and Francoprovençal in Rhône-Alpes, France. Dominic Watt; Carmen Llamas. Language, Borders and Identity, Edinburgh University Press, 2014, Language, Borders and Identity, 0748669779. halshs-01413325 HAL Id: halshs-01413325 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01413325 Submitted on 9 Dec 2016 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. What counts as a linguistic border, for whom, and with what implications? Exploring Occitan and Francoprovençal in Rhône-Alpes, France Michel Bert (DDL, Université Lumière/Lyon2) [email protected] James Costa (ICAR, Institut français de l’éducation/ENS de Lyon) [email protected] 1. Introduction Debates on the limits of the numerous Romance varieties spoken in what was once the western part of the Roman Empire have been rife for over a century (e.g. Bergounioux, 1989), and generally arose in the context of heated discussions over the constitution and legitimation of Nation-states.
    [Show full text]
  • The Genetic History of France
    bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/712497; this version posted July 24, 2019. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. 1 The Genetic History of France 2 Aude Saint Pierre1*, Joanna Giemza2*, Matilde Karakachoff2, Isabel Alves2, Philippe 3 Amouyel3+, Jean-François Dartigues4+, Christophe Tzourio4+, Martial Monteil5, Pilar Galan6, 4 Serge Hercberg6, Richard Redon2, Emmanuelle Génin1*, Christian Dina2* 5 1Univ Brest, Inserm, EFS, CHU Brest, UMR 1078, GGB, F-29200 Brest, France 6 2l'institut du thorax, INSERM, CNRS, Univ Nantes, CHU Nantes, Nantes, France 7 3Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille University Hospital, Institut Pasteur de Lille, LabEx DISTALZ- 8 UMR1167 - RID-AGE - Risk factors and molecular determinants of aging-related, F-59000 9 Lille, France 10 4Univ. Bordeaux, Inserm, Bordeaux Population Health Research Center, UMR 1219, CHU 11 Bordeaux, F-33000 Bordeaux, France 12 5Université de Nantes, UMR 6566 CReAAH, LARA, Nantes, France 13 6Université Paris 13, Equipe de Recherche en Epidémiologie Nutritionnelle, Centre de 14 Recherche en Epidémiologie et Statistiques, Inserm (U1153), Inra (U1125), Cnam, COMUE 15 Sorbonne Paris Cité, F-93017, Bobigny, France 16 * These authors contributed equally to this work 17 + On behalf of the 3C study 18 Running Title: The Genetic History of France 19 Key words: Population stratification, Genetic ancestry, Admixture, Demographic history, Gene 20 flow barriers, Association Study 21 Corresponding authors: Aude Saint Pierre, [email protected] 22 Christian Dina, [email protected] 23 1 bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/712497; this version posted July 24, 2019.
    [Show full text]
  • Principles of Regionalism Formation in European Countries and Considering Them for the Practice of a New Regionalism Formation in Ukraine
    ,nternational Journal of ,nnovative Technologies in Economy ,SS1 2412-8368 35,1C,3LES OF REGI21A/,S0 FOR0AT,21 ,1 E8R2PEA1 C281TR,ES A1D C21S,DER,1G THE0 )2R THE PRACT,CE OF A NE: REGI21A/,S0 )2R0AT,21 I1 8.RA,1E Associate professor Tulchinskiy R. 9. 8Nraine, .yiv, 3HE, "Academician Yuriy Bugay ,nternational Scientific and technical university", head of the department management and public administration !wd//[9 /ECh !.^dw!/d Received 08 FeEruary 2018 The article determines that new the institutional practices are Eeing formed Accepted 03 0arch 2018 within individual states, a new regionalism with some common tendencies 3ublished 15 0arch 2018 under the influence of globalization processes in European countries. ,t has Eeen found out, that the European space is developing under the paradigm of Y9zthw5^ new regionalism, which manifests itself both in the form of international new regionalism, cooperation and in the development of internal regionalization processes, in formation, which the regions act as subnational territories. It is founded, that the new regionalism, regionalism has accompanied in the European public opinion forming ideas experience, for reform of the European Community on the liEeralization of administrative regional policy organization 8nited Europe, updating new regionalism, and the purpose statement regions as subMects of political, social, economic and administrative relations. This takes place in parallel with the process of regionalization through the estaElishment of independence from the central regions of © 2018 The Author. national governments. ,ntroduction. The new regionalism in the E8 has accompanied by processes of decentralization and deconcentration, consisting not only in increasing and extending the rights of local authorities to manage all spheres of the population‘s life, but also in deconcentrating financial resources enshrined in the right to introduce and collect local taxes, using them to improve the welfare of their citizens.
    [Show full text]
  • Collective Action
    Collective Action in Winegrowing Regions: A Comparison of Burgundy and the Midi - David R. Weir July 1976 CRSO Working Paper #I37 Copies available through: The Center for ~esear.chon Social Organization, The University of Michigan, 330 Packard Street 8214 Ann Arbor, MI 48109 .Collective Action in Winegrowing Regions: A Coniparison of Burgundy and the Midi David R. Weir July 1976 Introduction The winegrower's revolt of 1907 is a familiar topic to students of rural rebellion. It has prompted excellent studies of the political characteris- tics of winegrowers in the Midi for the period 1850-1914. This. wealth of scholarly research on one region (the largest in France in terms of quantity of wine produced) has no counterpart for any of the other great winegrowing regions. This paper seeks to fill in a part of that void by examining the political activities of winegrowers in Burgundy in this period. French winegrowers are generally characterized as radical, so the historian might logically expect to find that there were incidents in other regions similar to those in the Midi, if smaller in scale. This expecta- tion turns out to be false for Burgundy, as suggested by the report of the 4 prefect of the Cote dlOr for June of 1907. The events of the Midi dominated political concerns in my department during the month of June, 1907. The people of the Cote dlOr received the news of the troubles in those departments with more surprise and curiosity than sympathy. Our people are too calm, too respectful of the law to let themselves be influenced by the Midi winegrowers .
    [Show full text]
  • Is the River Network in the Grand Est and Neighbouring Regions a Source of Economic Potential to Be Developed?
    PROCEEDINGS FROM THE SEMINAR ON 7 NOVEMBER 2016 ON TRANSBORDER QUESTIONS AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT THE GRAND EST REGION AND ITS NEIGHBOURS NEW DIMENSIONS, NEW OPPORTUNITIES? WHERETHE GRAND ARE ESTWE GOING?REGION AND ITS NEIGHBOURS: NEW DIMENSIONS, NEW OPPORTUNITIES? Agenda PROCEEDINGS FROM THE SEMINAR ON 7 NOVEMBER 2016 ON TRANSBORDER QUESTIONS AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Introduction Roland RIES, Mayor of Strasbourg, President of the Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau Robert HERRMANN, President of the Eurometropolis of Strasbourg, President of the Strasbourg- Mulhouse-Colmar metropolitan hub Round table n° 1 - What are the best development models for the transborder regions? Catherine TRAUTMANN, former Minister, Vice-President of the Eurometropolis of Strasbourg Dr. Katharina ERDMENGER, Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, Germany Didier HERBILLON, Mayor of Sedan Jean-Paul DETAILLE, Advisor to the Minister of Agriculture and Tourism, in charge of the representation of the Greater Region of Wallonia Contributor: Frédéric BIERRY, President of the Bas-Rhin Departmental Council Round table n° 2 - What are the tools for developing our transborder regions? Stephan TOSCANI, Minister of Finances and European Affairs for the Sarre region André ROSSINOT, President of the Greater Nancy Metropolitan area, President of the Sillon Lorrain Metropolitan hub, Vice-President of MOT (Transborder Operational Mission) Dr. Manuel FRIESECKE, Director of Regio Basiliensis, Swiss partner for cooperation in Upper Rhine Jean-Claude SINNER, Director
    [Show full text]
  • CCRE CEMR En.Pdf
    Organised in collaboration with: PROGRAMME * UThursday 28 October 10-12.00: meeting of the Steering Group, reflection process on the future of CEMR (limited to members) 14:30 Welcome addresses • Sonia Dubourg-Lavroff , Deputy Mayor of Bordeaux, responsible for relations with the European Union • Louis Le Pensec , President of the French Section of CEMR, former Minister, Vice- President of CEMR • Michael Häupl , President of CEMR, Mayor and Governor of Vienna The World and Europe facing new challenges … In today’s fast-moving global and European context, an exchange with Europe’s local and regional authorities and their representative associations on current and coming challenges and the contributions we can offer. 14:45 Reflecting on the future of Europe • Enrique Barón Crespo , former President of the European Parliament, President of the European Foundation for Information Society • Alfonso Querejeta , Secretary General and General Counsel of Legal Affairs, European Investment Bank (EIB) • Charlie Karlsson , Professor of Economics, Associate Dean of Education and Director of the Centre for Innovation Systems, Entrepreneurship and Growthand INA, Jönköping International Business School, Jönköping University Exchange with the participants 15:45 Coffee break 0B Building hope from the ground up 1B 16:15 Address by António Costa , Mayor of Lisbon UExamples for Optimism! U towns and regions overcoming adversity: Ibon Areso , First Deputy Mayor of Bilbao (Basque region – Spain) Karine Daniel , Deputy Mayor of Nantes (Pays de la Loire – France)
    [Show full text]
  • Revolution in France
    REVOLUTION IN FRANCE In this chapter, you will examine the period of the French Revolution, which lasted from the 1780s until the end of the century. By the end of the chapter, you will •describe life in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century France outline the social, economic, and political causes of the French Revolution describe the course of the French Revolution •compare and contrast the views of the philosophes use primary sources to identify point of view and editorial purpose construct rules for critically evaluating historical accounts read character in portraits o assess the importance of the French Revolution Emilie: A Tale of the French Revolution This fictional story is set in Paris during the height of the French Revolution—an event you will read about in this chapter, and one that shaped the modern world. The story captures the turbulent atmosphere of the period, when ordinary citizens would suddenly find themselves in danger because of their political beliefs. Emilie is a member of the moderate Girondist Party. As the story opens, she has just escaped execution by members of the more radical Jacobin Party, who have seized control of the revolution and believe the Girondists must be put down. milie was not alone in into the narrow passage. She Her escape was a miracle. A the darkness. The sewer heard shouts, splashing, and friend of Charlotte Corday, she was alive with animal curses—guards searching other had been sentenced to the Esounds. Fingers sewers—then only the metallic guillotine. But the tumbrel squeezing against the slimy dripping of water and the carrying her to certain death bricks, she pulled herself deeper scuffling of rats.
    [Show full text]
  • Île De France
    Voice of the Mayors Jean Paul Huchon Île-de-France (Paris Region) The First European Metropolis Voice of Jean Paul Huchon the Mayors 1 About Voice of the Mayors Celebrating its thirtieth anniversary, METROPOLIS wishes to leverage the unique experience of its members, represented by the mayors of the major metrop- olises, presidents and governors of metropolitan regions. Too often, the expertise of these high-ranking officials is lost once their term has come to an end. However, at a time when global urban development is quickening its pace, their experience is more beneficial than ever for the new generations of local decision-makers, the entire spectrum of public and private local development stakeholders and partners in the international community. In its capacity as a network of the world’s major metropolises, METROPO- LIS also seeks to make an active contribution to the current international debate concerning the revision of the Millennium Development Goals, negotiations on cli- mate change and the preparations for the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III). This is how the idea for Voice of the Mayors came into being, as a wealth of first-hand testimonies from local and regional leaders whose experience de- serves to be recounted and disseminated. Bequeathing this legacy also conveys the willingess of METROPOLIS members to share their experiences and to enhance the exchange of knowledge, a concerted effort to contribute towards shaping sus- tainable urban development worldwide. Upon the creation of METROPOLIS in 1984, the 14 founding members expressed their desire to work together to strengthen their mutual capacities to manage their cities.
    [Show full text]