EU and Regional Organisations - Assignment Example

EU and Regional Organisations It can be said with some level of certainty that the future of Europe depends on its various bodies and organisations functioning to a level which brings further unity to the EU. Simply put, the EU has not yet met the high expectations which international political analysts had created a few years ago when the Euro was launched the world was giddy with the idea of an alternate super power. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development which has its headquarters in Paris has said that the economic prospects of Europe as a whole are quite dark and other regional organizations must do their part to ensure that the European economy does not go into a decline (Zakria 2006). The first major problem which is faced by various regional organisations is integration and conformity. This problem itself has persisted as a need for deep coordination in regional governance as well as regional assistance between European nations since the end of World War Two. The targets set by EU for itself as well as its various organizations through stated goals and development programs have worked to provide stronger regional policies for integration. This has manifested itself in both economic as well as administrative terms. Taking the United Kingdom as an example of this, as a member state it has taken several important steps towards devolving the powers of administration from central governments to regional powers. This was done as a part of the measures for integration of the European Union and is one of many attempts to create a more perfect union by using sub-national economic development bodies working at both the regional and local levels. Gleeson, B. (2003). The case of Britain is important because Britain has had a history of strong centralised governments and this goes to show a commitment to the notion of the united European ideal. In 1998, Shutt & Colwell wrote that they expected to see a fundamental shift in the way regional policies were made as well as the way regional bodies would be expected to work. They noted that a part of that change was already underway since the policy environment was being altered in the U.K (for the first time in two decades) towards cooperation for regional economic development and strategic regional planning. A lot of praise was given by them for the RDAs (Regional Development Agencies) which had been created not too long ago. In fact, the writers expressed their disappointment that Tony Blair postponed the inclusion of elected Regional Chambers in England until after 2002 since the RDAs could be used as valuable tools to promote coordination of the states and further integration Britain with the EU (Shutt & Colwell 1998). However, this does not stop us now from considering how the United Kingdom and the European Union can continue on the path to integration and regional coordination using new frameworks and the various RDAs working in the locality. The Regional Development Agencies will have to setup a new agenda of economic development, differentiated from the old writ of the local government and keep the EU in mind as they make local decisions (Shutt & Colwell 1998). Of course there is a fine balance between which has to be given priority but maintaining that balance is the sole responsibility of the organisation in the first place. While they should consider the effect of their actions on the European Union as a whole, if they work without taking positive steps for the region they are working in then they could simply lose the confidence of the local people and could have severe repercussions for the stability of the EU. In recent times, the objectives of the RDAs have come to the limelight and people are now aware of what they plan to do in the regions where they operate. The period of 1994 to 1999 had more objectives than those which are present today but the sprit of the objectives remains the same in the presently declared objectives. i.e.: Increasing the development and administrative adjustment of areas where development is lagging. Supporting the economic and social survival of regions with structural problems and difficulties. Adjusting and modernising rules and systems of education, training and employment procedures. Evidently, these steps and objectives are broad enough to encourage both the economic stimulation of the regions as well as provide situations where integration with the EU can be enhanced (Gleeson 2003). By being broad in nature, the objectives can have different interpretations and the RDAs can have a lot of room to expand into areas which are as yet unexplored. The case of France is another example where regional organisations have begun influencing the country to such an extent that the closely held ideals of a Jacobin state have all but evaporated. France is obligated to accept the principles of partnership and that has made them given up their right to intervene in local government issues when it pleased them. The central government at Paris serves as little more than a partner when it comes to the actions of the RDAs and often has to compromise when points of contention are raised between them and the representatives of the EU (Nay, 2002). This situation comes out of a control of funds; local authorities know that European policies dictate how money is spent and they control the final allotment of the structural funds. Friendly relations between the two are automatically created when money is involved. However, it is an uneasy partnership since the balance of power between the parties involved is not very clear and issues are bound to come up unless this process is codified and a clarity is given to all those who are involved in the decision making process. If the French partnership is uneasy, the Polish situation is even worse since under the criteria of identification of troubled regions under the EU regional policy; all Polish regions would be eligible for support under objective one (Churski 2005). A disadvantage of having objectives which are too broad is that the cost of keeping up with those objectives can be tremendous. Additionally, this is perhaps not the only case since there are many regions which have recently joined the EU from the Iron Curtain and face problems similar to those which have been experienced by Poland. The expansion of the EU presents a great challenge to the regional policies and the RDAs since it has created severe inequalities in terms of economies and personal incomes. At the national level, more than a third of the population would be living in regions which have a per capital income of less than 90% of the EU average (European Commission, 2001). This would be a great challenge for the regional organisations since they would have to handle development and infrastructure costs for the newly added regions. Getimis (2003) suggests several ways in which the expansion could change or might require the local policies to be changed in order to avoid problems down the road. The European Regional Fund policy failed in the 70s and the 80s but with a careful analysis of past mistakes, they can be avoided in this round. It is suggested the development and support of the new regions should not be as extensive as it was with previously joined regions (Getimis 2003). It is possible that such a policy could create resentment therefore the addition of policies which guide the new regions towards establishing themselves as sound economies would certainly be a good approach. Streamlined government is also a good suggestion for improving regional cooperation and integration of new members into the EU. This would promote a level of synergy among all levels of governments and the existing policy structures could be improved to provide more room for regional input. However, such processes must be combined with openness to the changes in the social environment of the region otherwise the outcome could be fragmentation and failure instead of cohesion and success (Getimis 2003). Regional networks between countries and government-industry partnerships would go a long way towards bringing depressed areas into the fold of mainstream Europe (Getimis 2003). These networks would need to be stable and should extend beyond the simple placement of infrastructure. Policies should be made which make improvements and economic advances a permanent and sustainable feature of the RDAs motives. Finally, the EU will always depend on regional organisations to ensure development of the union not only in terms of economic cooperation, but it will also depend on them for creating sustainable pathways for other facets of integration. The diversity of the European Union has always been a very positive advantage for the member countries but cooperation is what will take them to new heights and ever greater levels of achievement. Word Count: 1,609. Works Cited Churski, P. (2005). Problem areas in Poland in terms of the objectives of the European Unions regional policy. European Planning Studies, 13(1), 45-72 European Commission (2001) Unity, Solidarity, Diversity for Europe, its People and its Territory: Second Report on Economic and Social Cohesion. Luxembourg: European Commission. Getimis, P. (2003). Improving European Union Regional Policy by Learning from the Past in View of Enlargement. European Planning Studies, 11(1), p77-88. Gleeson, B. (2003). Learning About Regionalism from Europe: ‘Economic Normalisation’ and Beyond. Australian Geographical Studies, 41(3), 221-236. Nay, O. (2002). European Community Policy in France: The State Bounces Back. Journal of European Integration, 24(3), 245-260. Shutt, J., & Colwell, A. (1998). Towards 2006: European Union Regional Policy and UK Local Government: A New Regional Agenda. European Planning Studies, 6(6), 709-730. Zakria, F. (2006). The Decline and Fall of Europe. Newsweek, 147(8). 45-45. Read More