Pellegrini: Cohesion Funds Might Be Available Even After 2020
Brussels, November 16 (TASR-correspondent) – Slovakia believes that European cohesion policies, including cohesion funds, will remain in place even after 2020, said Slovak Vice-premier for Investments and Informatisation Peter Pellegrini after a session of the General Affairs Council for Cohesion in Brussels on Wednesday.
At a joint press conference with Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu, Pellegrini reported that the meeting of ministers that he presided over officially opened a debate on the fate of EU funds after 2020 for the first time.
“I’m happy that we didn’t debate whether [the cohesion policy] should exist or not. Instead, we’re speaking quite naturally about how it should be modernised and continue,” Pellegrini told TASR.
Expressing hope that these resources won’t “dry up” in the next multi-year budgetary period, Pellegrini noted that certain changes to the cohesion policy will take place. For example, Brexit will certainly reduce the EU’s income, including that for cohesion.
“There’s a hope that EU funds will be available for Slovakia even after 2020, but it needs to be noted that they won’t be so voluminous but rather more specified for use,” said Pellegrini.
Meanwhile, Cretu told TASR that it’s very important to keep this “most visible European policy in the lives of ordinary people”.
