Municipalities may become more dependent on national governments in accessing European funds if the architecture proposed by the European Commission for the next Multiannual Financial Framework moves forward. This was the warning issued by Sérgio Gonçalves, a Portuguese MEP, at the opening of the debate on community funding held at Hotel Vila Galé in Santa Cruz.
The MEP considered that the European Commission's proposal profoundly alters the way European policies are implemented, by providing for the replacement of the mechanisms currently in place for the management and distribution of community funds.
The debate took place in the morning at Hotel Vila Galé in Santa Cruz and brought together officials and specialists to discuss the future of community funding and the challenges municipalities face in accessing European funds.
Sérgio Gonçalves warned that this change in the fund execution architecture may represent a step backwards in the proximity of European funds to citizens and local governments, increasing intermediation on the part of national governments.
