This presentation was given by the European Commission on a position paper for the UK on future of structural funds 2014-2020. This presentation was given in London on 6 December 2012. Find out more about the NCVO's european policy work: http://europeanfundingnetwork.eu

1. Position Paper UK
Position of the Commission Services on the
Development of the Partnership
Agreement and Programmes in the UK for
the period 2014-2020
José Palma Andrés – Director, DG Regional and Urban Policy
Peter Stub Jorgensen – Director, DG Employment
Armando Astudillo Gonzalez – DG Maritime Affairs and
Fisheries
Jean-Bernard Benhaiem, DG Agriculture and Rural
Development
London, 6 December 2012

2. Contents
A. Context
B. Challenges and Priorities relevant to Funds
C. Priorities for European Territorial Cooperation
D. Success Factors for Effective Delivery
2

3. A. Context
Common Strategic Framework
• Strategic, integrated, coordinated and coherent
approach
• Thematic concentration
• Focus on results
• Cooperation
• Simplification
3

4. THE COMMON STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
ERDF, ESF, EAFRD, EMFF
THE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT
ERDF, ESF, EAFRD, EMFF
Operational Programmes for
ERDF (incl. ETC)
ESF
EMFF
EAFRD
EU level
National level
Context 4

5. Socio-economic Situation UK
• UK GDP per capita 108% of the EU-27
• Large regional disparities: between and within
regions
• Unemployment: 7.9%. Youth unemployment
20.4%
• 80% population urban area
• Biggest contributors to growth expected:
private consumption, business and dwelling
investment
Context 5

6. Selection Europe 2020 headline
targets
Europe 2020 headline targets Current
situation UK
National 2020
target - NRP
3% of EU GDP to be invested in
research and development
1.77% No target in NRP
20% energy from renewables 2.9% 15%
75% population aged 20-64 should
be employed
73.6% No target in NRP
Reduction in number of people in
EU at risk of poverty or social
exclusion by al least 20 million
Increase from
13.5m to 14.2m
between 2007
and 2010
No target in NRP
Context 6

7. Why a Position Paper?
• Context: closer alignment - Europe 2020
strategy and Country Specific Recommendations
• Pro-active approach: early stage information on
Commission services' position on Member
States' priorities for 2014-2020
• Commission's view on development needs,
challenges and priorities
• Framework for dialogue between Commission
services and Member States
7Context

8. B. Challenges and Priorities relevant
to the Funds
Decreasing labour market
opportunities and increasing
risk of social exclusion
8

9. Significant labour market challenges
 Low labour market participation of young
people, (NEETs) / increase of part-time or
temporary jobs.
 High number of low skilled workers, for
whom demand is falling.
 Gender gap in type of employment/ large
proportion of part-time and fixed-term
contracts.
9

10. Significant labour market challenges
• Increasing early school leaving (currently 14.9%)
10

11. Significant social inclusion challenges
• Insufficiently flexible and expensive full-
time pre-school child care.
• Increasing (2007-10) No of people at-risk-
of-poverty or social exclusion.
• Secong highest rate of workless
households in Europe (17.3% in 2011).
11

12. Increase labour market participation
through improved labour market and
education policies and reducing the
risk of social exclusion
Funding priority
12

13. Priorities and specific objectives
• 1. Integration of young people,
especially of (NEETs) into the labour
market
 SMEs take up more young apprentices.
 Business starts-ups for young people.
 Youth guarantee for young people.
 Young people without basic skills get access
to state funded training.
Promoting Employment and
Supporting labour mobility
13

14. Priorities and specific objectives
2. Access to employment and support for
labour mobility:
Support unemployed, economically inactive
and multiple disadvantaged.
Increase employability of the long term-
unemployed.
Employment in rural and coastal areas.
Promoting Employment and
Supporting labour mobility
14

15. Priorities and specific objectives
• Active inclusion:
 Reduce the number of people at risk of
poverty and exclusion.
 Increase employability of inactive and
multiple disadvantaged.
 Facilitating access to childcare services.
Promoting social inclusion
and combating poverty
15

16. Priorities and specific objectives
• 1. Lifelong learning and skills upgrade
 Increase apprenticeships for young people.
 Improve quality of vocational training.
 Increase advanced and higher-level skills.
 Involve more SME's.
 Encourage adaptation in some sectors and
regions.
 Access to vocational training to people with
poor basic skills.
Investing in education, skills
and lifelong learning
16

17. Priorities and specific objectives
2. Support vocational training in the
agricultural, fisheries and forestry
sectors.
3. Reduce early school-leaving.
Investing in education, skills
and lifelong learning
17

18. Challenge: Stagnant investment in R&D&I
and low availability of finance to the private
sector (especially SMEs)
•Stagnating investment in R&I in recent years
•Translating knowledge into new products and
intellectual capital, commercialising research
•Access to funding for SMEs
Challenges and Priorities… 18

19. Priority: Promoting R&D investment and
the competitiveness of the business sector
• Support business investment in R&D&I and enhance the
effective commercialisation of basic research and the
cooperation between research and economic sectors
• Support innovative production and consumption
patterns which minimise negative impact on
environment
• Increase SME competitiveness and back
entrepreneurship, particularly in export-related sectors,
through provision of funding (non-bank and business
advisory services)
Challenges and Priorities… 19

20. Priority: Promoting R&D investment and
the competitiveness of the business sector
Thematic objective: Strengthening research,
technological development and innovation
Challenges and Priorities… 20

21. Priority: Promoting R&D investment and
the competitiveness of the business sector
Thematic objective: Enhancing the competitiveness
of SMEs, the agricultural sector and the fisheries and
aquaculture sector
Country specific recommendation: Improve the availability of
bank and non-bank financing to the private sector and in
particular to SMEs
Challenges and Priorities… 21

22. Challenge: Inefficient use of resources
•Share of renewable energy sources in final consumption
should increase
•Preservation of natural resources, quality and availability
of water resources, soil quality and erosion
•Sustainable use of marine resources for the further
development of the country's blue economy
•Economically viable adaptation of the fisheries sector to
current, social and environmental sustainability
challenges
Challenges and Priorities… 22

23. Priority: Promoting an enviromentally
friendly and resource-efficient economy
• Promote growth and sustainable living through
invesments in urban transport and connectivity
• Support energy efficiency and the use of renewable
energy
• Improve the management and environmental protection
of national resources
Challenges and Priorities… 23

24. Priority: Promoting an enviromentally
friendly and resource-efficient economy
Thematic Objective: Supporting the shift towards a low-
carbon economy in all sectors
Thematic Objective: Protecting the environment and
promoting resource efficiency
Challenges and Priorities… 24

25. C. Priorities for European Territorial
Cooperation
Cooperative approaches in coherence with
country-specific programmes, eg:
•Fostering innovation, eco-innovation, renewable
energy, energy efficiency and environmental
protection, sharing best practice, etc.
•Mobilisation of co-investments - smart
specialisation potential of cooperative cluster
nodes. Cooperation synergies.
•The Atlantic Strategy
•Potential PEACE programme
25

26. D. Success Factors for Effective
Delivery
• Strategic, integrated, coordinated and coherent
approach
• Monitoring and evaluation aligned to new
regulatory framework
• Coordination, complementarity and synergy
between CSF funds including use of integrated
approaches (ITIs, CLLD, etc.)
26

27. Ex-ante conditionalities:
• Smart Specialisation Strategy
• Employment and training-related
conditionalities
• Fisheries-related conditionalities (multi-annual
strategic plan on aquaculture, administrative
capacity for data collection and implementation
of an EU control, inspection and enforcement
system)
27Success factors …

28. Monitoring and evaluation
Emphasis should shift from financial absorption to
results. This implies building robust monitoring
and evaluation capacities, including regional level,
to:
• Set realiable targets and track physical progress
better
• Improve alert mechanisms
• Carry out in-depth evaluations and translate their
results into corrective measures
• Develop sound methodologies to capture the impact
of the interventions
28

29. Integrated approaches to territorial
development
• A broad range of instruments are provided for in this
regard and should be fully grasped (e.g. Atlantic
strategy)
• In order to stimulate ownership, the role of local actors
should be enhanced in line with the LEADER experience
• Integrated Territorial Investments allow the flexible
implementation of parts of OPs in a cross-cutting
manner – their success may critically depend on setting
up sound management structures
• Community-led Local Development offers an integrated
bottom-up approach in response to complex territorial
challenges
29

30. What Next?
• Informal dialogue meetings between Commission
and UK
• Submission of draft Partnership Agreement by UK
• negotiation mandate and observations on
Partnership Agreement sent to UK by Commission
• Adoption Partnership Agreement
• Submission of draft Programmes
• Observations on Programmes by Commission
• Final deadline for adoption of Programmes
30

31. Next stepsNext steps
•
PA
adoption
by EC
Second
semester
2013
Second
semester
2013
Beginning
of the official
negotiations
between EC
and the UK
November
2012
November
2012
Launch UK
November
2012 until
submission
PA by MS
November
2012 until
submission
PA by MS
Informal
dialogue
between EC
and the UK -
Discussion
on
specific areas
PA/OPs
Second
semester
2013
Second
semester
2013
Q1 2014Q1 2014 First half
2014
First half
2014
Official
submission
PA and OPs
OP
adoption
by EC
31

32. Timing for negotiations
Next steps 32

33. It is essential to start the preparation of the new
programming documents now.
Work should start on:
• Ex-ante conditionalities to be fulfilled by the PA and OPs
submission
• Ex-ante evaluation to be ready by the PA and OPs
submission
• Involvement of all partners from the start ensuring
ownership of the programmes
• Discussions, bilateral meetings
by topics
by funds when necessary
Next steps

34. Thank you.