On 29 November the CoR Plenary adopted the opinion drafted by the president of the assembly, Vasco Alves Cordeiro, and by Emil Boc, chair of the CoR's Commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy and EU Budget on the future of Cohesion Policy

The debate on how Cohesion Policy should be reformed after the current EU budgetary period 2021-27 is taking off and the CoR, which represents over 1 million elected local and regional politicians, puts forward crucial requests to reshape a policy that represents one-third of the EU budget and should continue to be prioritised as a cornerstone of economic, social, and territorial development in all European territories.

The CoR reiterates that all European regions should remain eligible for funding in the future and the shared-management model, multi-level governance and the partnership principle should be kept as guiding principles of Cohesion Policy post-2027.

We have new challenges and new forms of disparities that can rise to social tension if they remain unaddressed. These challenges go beyond borders, and cannot be tackled by Member States alone but in partnership with the regions, said EA Vice President Kieran McCarthy while taking the floor on behalf of the EA Group.

The magnitude of challenges is so huge that it needs an adequate budget. The proliferation of instruments and centrally managed instruments are not friends of local democracy, he continued.

Lord Mayor of Cork also recalled the huge added value of territorial and in particular cross border cooperation across land and sea borders.​