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The Regional Development Programmes of the Second Generation for the Period 1981-1985

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The Regional Development Programmes of the Second Generation for the Period 1981-1985 ^^_ DOCUMENT THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES OF THE SECOND GENERATION FOR THE PERIOD 1981-1985 € COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES This document has been prepared for use within the Commission. It does not necessarily represent the Commission's official position. This publication is also available in the following languages DA ISBN 92-825-4765-5 DE ISBN 92-825-4766-3 GR ISBN 92-825-4767-1 FR ISBN 92-825-4769-8 IT ISBN 92-825-4770-1 NL ISBN 92-825-4771-X Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 1985 ISBN 92-825-4768-X Catalogue number: CB-41-84-862-EN-C Articles and texts appearing in this document may be reproduced freely in whole or in part providing their source is mentioned. Printed in Belgium Commission of the European Communities THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAWES OF THE SECOND GENERATION FOR THE PERIOD 1981-1985 Document Contents I - Introduction 5 II - Rote of the regional development programmes 7 III - Summaries of the regional development programmes 9 - Belgium 11 - Denmark 31 - Federal Republic of Germany 51 - Greece 75 - France 107 - Ireland 135 - Italy 149 - Luxembourg 167 -Netherlands 179 - United Kingdom 193 IV - Comparative analysis 227 Annexes I - Common Outline 241 II - Commission opinion 247 I. INTRODUCTION By June 1983 all Member States had submitted their second generation regional development programmes to the Commission in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 724/75 of 18 March 1975 establishing a European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)1. In 1977 the Member States submitted the first regional development programmes 2 based on the common outline produced by the Regional Policy Committee . In 1978 this Committee delivered its opinion on th·; programmes, and in 1979 3 4 the Commission gave its opinion and formulated recommendations for the Member States on the basis of the provisions of Community regional policy. Moreover, the Economic and Social Committee gave its opinion on the programme in 1980 , and the European Parliament forwarded a resolution the same year. In Council Regulation (EEC) No 214/79 of 6 February 1979 the Commission is required to examine those programmes with regard to Community objectives, and in addition, the Council Resolution of 6 February 1979 Q concerning the guidelines for Community regional policy , stipulates that regional development programmes constitute the most appropriate framework for the practical implementation of proper coordination of national regional policies and of Community regional policy. Having examined the new regional 9 development programmes in this context the Commission made known its opinion . 1. O.J. L 73 of 21.3.1975 2. O.J. C 69 of 24.3.1976 (see Annex I) 3. O.J. L 143 of 12.6.1979 4. O.J. L 143 of 12.6.1979 5. O.J. C 205 of 11.8.1980 6. O.J. C 265 of 13.10.1980 7. 0..]. L 35 of 9.2.1979 8. O.J. C 36 of 9.2.1979 9. O.J. L 211 of 8.8.1984 (see Annex II). II. ROLE OF THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES The new - second generation - regional development programmes concern the regions assisted by the ERDF, covering about 55% of the area of the Community and 35% of its population. They cover, with a few exceptions, the period 1981-85. Regional development programmes are, from a Community point of view, the reference tool for assessing projects submitted for ERDF assistance and the most appropriate framework for the coordination of the national regional policies and the Community regional policy. In a market economy such programmes are of an indicative nature; they must be updated regularly. The ERDF Regulation stipulates that, in order to benefit from the Fund's assistance, investments must 'fall within the framework of a regional development programme'. This means that the programme should justify the projects, though these do not necessarily have to be listed explicitly. The programmes must also show the need for ERDF assistance to infrastructure projects contributing to the development of the region concerned. The role of the programmes in administering the ERDF is easily understood if one bears in mind that between 1975 and 1982 more than 17 000 projects received assistance. The more detailed and precise the content of the programmes, the easier it will be for the Fund to assess whether projects fall within the framework of the programmes. The effectiveness of ERDF assistance is closely linked to the quality of the regional development programmes. As regards the ERDF regions, the regional development programmes are also the reference framework for using other Community financial instruments, allowing greater consistency to be achieved between the various forms of Community financial assistance in the regions concerned. / As stated in the Council Resolution of 6 February 1979(1), the programmes also constitute the most appropriate framework for coordinating national and Community regional policies. Such coordination must be achieved through more precise information on regional policy and regional planning in the various Member States and through comparison of the objectives set and the resources deployed, identifying the points of convergence and divergence, so that a balanced distribution of economic activities in the Community can be progressively achieved. Such examinations could relate to such matters as the cost and effectiveness of the various types of aid, the concept and assessment of infrastructure requirements, programmes for frontier regions, and study of the regional impact of public expenditure. In this connection, an important role is played by the Regional Policy Committee, attached to the Council and the Commission, which was set up with a view to contributing to the coordination of the regional policies of the Member States. In addition, the guidelines and priorities established on the basis of the periodic report on social and economic trends in the regions of the Community, which the Commission presented to the Council in July 1981(2) as provided for in the Council Decisions and Resolution of 6 February 1979, helps to define the Community criteria for such coordination. Finally, the regional development programmes must allow the Community authoi— ities to take account of the regional impact of Community policies and the effects of measures they adopt, particularly as regards the areas in which such Community policies are most strongly established (common agricultural policy, trade policy). If they contain sufficiently precise information on this field, the regional development programmes will make it possible to carry out this task more effectively. The Commission has examined the second generation programmes sent by the Member States in close collaboration with the national authorities, particularly withir the context of the Regional Policy Committee, which delivered its opinion on these programmes in accordance with Regulation No 724/75. In many cases, the programmes were supplemented during the examination procedure. In its opinion (see Annex II), the Commission made reference to the common outline (see Annex D and its recommendations on the programmes(3). (1) O.J. C 36 of 9.2.1979 (2) C0M(81) 152final (3) O.J. L 143 of 12.6.1979 6 III - SUMMARIES OF THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES In the following pages, the regional development programmes of the various Member States have been summarized in the following order : Belgium Denmark, including Greenland Federal Republic of Germany Greece France Ireland Italy Luxembourg Netherlands United Kingdom J 11 Summary of the regional development programme Belgium Flanders 1981-1985 Wallonie 1982-1985 // BELGIUM 13 Belgium presented a regional development programme for Flanders in 1981 and one for Wallonia in 1982. Those programmes were prepared by the regional authorities concerned. Flanders 1. Social and economic analyses Programmes have been worked out for three development blocks - Limburg-Kempen, West- Hoek and Middengebied (East Flanders). These blocks include the development areas which are eligible for ERDF assistance under the EEC decision of 26 April 1972(1). In 1980 the total population of Flanders was 5,619,00'" md coral working population 2,369,000. In the period 1975-80 the working population increased by 100,000 persons in Flanders, while in the perioa 1974-79 total employment increased by 20,000; employment in the industrial sector fell by about. 100,000 while in the tertiary sector the number of jobs increased by about 120,000. Total unemployment increased from 51,000 in 1974 to 186,000 in 1980, or from 4% to 12%. The per capita GDP at current prices in Flanders moved closer to the national average, reaching 99% in 1977 (96% in 1970). In the Limburg-Kempen development bloc total employment increased by 19,000 in the period 1974-79, to 228,000, but in spite of this unemployment 'increased to about 17% in 1980. The high level of unemployment is mainly due to the high female unemployment rate (about 30%). The area still has the lowest per capita income in Flanders - about 12% under the level of Flanders as a whole. The Westhoek development bloc experienced an increase in total employment of about 5,000 in the period 1974679 to 61,500, but his was inadequate, however, to meet the growing demand for jobs, and unemployment rose to a level well above the average for Flanders in 1980. Average per capita income is still among the lowest in Belgium. The Central area (East Flanders) experienced a decline of 2,500 in total employment to 41,000, due to the monostructural character of industry. Unemployment more than trebled in the period 1974680, and the average per capita income is still 10% under the national average (1979). The most important imbalances besetting Flanders are unemployment, a very Low economic growth rate, an unfavourable trend in investments, a sharp rise in the labour supply and a very pronounced dependence on other count: ies ¿s a result of foreign investments in flanders and 3 very high exportation rate.
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