IInd GENERAL MEETING OF ASSOCIATIONS OF LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE MEMBER COUNTRIES

18 September 2008 - Palais de l’Europe - Room 5

Speech by Ulrich Bohner, Secretary General of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe

President of the Congress,

Secretary General of the Council of Europe,

Distinguished representatives of national associations,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The President of the Congress, Mr Yavuz Mildon, has just spoken about the importance of creating synergies between the Congress and associations of local and regional authorities, mentioning the European Charter of Local Self-Government as a reference point. I also would like to refer to the Charter, which emphasises the importance of independent administrative structures of local self-government, the importance of staff of local elected representatives for the effective exercise of their duties.

It is indeed the task of the secretariat to ensure the implementation of political action initiated by elected authorities, to translate it into practical achievements. Similarly, cooperation between Congress members and local and regional authorities in member states must be backed by dialogue and interaction between the Congress Secretariat and secretariats of associations, beginning with their Secretaries General.

This point was also discussed at the first general meeting in February 2006, which encouraged, in its conclusions, staff exchanges and in particular internships and secondments from associations to support the work of the Congress, and give members of associations experience of networking at the European level. This is one idea which could be taken up and developed further, because it is linked with the undeniable need for proper training and appropriate qualifications – hence, experience – for both local elected representatives and their staff. The Congress has much to offer to associations in this field.

However, the novelty of this meeting is the discussion of Congress priorities for 2009-2010 and of your views on how they fit with your activities, and how your activities fit with the planned Congress action. I would like to stress that this is the first time when associations are consulted on formulating priorities of the Congress work, following the decision, taken since the first general meeting, to involve not only Congress committees but also associations in the preparation of this document. This decision comes from our conviction that associations of local and regional authorities are the cornerstone in the system of local democracy, linking territorial communities to the local-national and local-international axes.

Coming back to practicalities of cooperation between the Congress and associations, I would like to stress that if we want quality political action and quality cooperation (in our case, between the Congress and associations), we need not only quality politicians (in our case, local elected representatives) but also quality local staff. The European Charter of Local Self-Government provides for conditions of recruitment of local staff, based on merit. The Charter also provides for appropriate training for both elected representatives and their staff.

It is in this spirit that the Congress launched and continues to support the European Network of Training Organisations for local and regional authorities, ENTO, which now includes 19 participating countries, with four more applying. Among ENTO members are also associations of local and regional authorities, and you can find ENTO services useful for raising the qualification level of your staff.

One good example of cooperation between the Congress Secretariat and staff of local elected representatives is our relations with UDITE, the Federation of Local Government Chief Executive Officers of Europe. The Congress has been lending its support to UDITE and its efforts to ensure the independence and good functioning of an efficient public service at local and regional level, involving such issues as legal status and employment of local and regional authorities’ staff, their training and staff policy requirements. The Congress has been integrating UDITE proposals in its recommendations, thus translating them into call for action at pan-European level. This model can be used in our relations with associations’ secretariats as well; we are ready to share our experience and are open for your input.

Just relatively recently, we organised a conference with UDITE on a delicately balanced and complementary partnership between the elected executive and the local authority Chief executive, in Strasbourg in January 2008, and participated in the UDITE Congress in Cardiff this month, which focused on the role of local staff and their Chief Executives in responding to economic, social and environmental challenges facing our communities. I am sure that you can draw many useful proposals from such discussions. We are convinced that this partnership between elected executives and their staff is a prerequisite for the good functioning of local democratic machinery which is ensured through national associations.

Another example which can serve as a model are regular meetings held between Presidents and Secretaries General of the Congress and of the EU Committee of the Regions, to discuss issues of common interest and possibilities for common action. In a similar vein, regular exchanges of information could be established between Presidents and Secretaries General of the Congress and associations, to identify areas of the current and future activities where our synergies would be possible and useful. Such exchanges should not be limited to the highest level and should involve specific departments of secretariats concerned with similar issues.

One more area which I would like to touch upon is the Congress action in support of the creation and development of national associations of local and regional authorities and their networks. Indeed, Congress recommendations to national governments and exchanges of views with government officials in many countries served as catalyst for setting up such associations. For some of them, the Congress also served as an example to model their structure and work. But, of course, we also need your input into this work. We would also like to see your increased participation in structures supported by the Congress, such as NALAS, ALDA, Adriatic and Black Sea Euroregions, or ENTO which I have already mentioned.

I look forward to discussing proposals on how to channel these ideas into practical steps and measures to reinforce cooperation both between members of the Congress and of associations and between their secretariats.