Strasbourg, 11 February 2010                                                                CDLR-Bu(2010)7

BUREAU OF THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE

ON LOCAL AND REGIONAL DEMOCRACY

(CDLR)

MEETING REPORT

         

25 January 2010

1.         Opening of the meeting

The Chair of the CDLR, Mr Vyacheslav Tolkovanov (Ukraine), opened the meeting of the Bureau and welcomed the participants, listed in appendix 1.

2.         Adoption of the agenda

The agenda, as adopted, appears at appendix 2.

3.         Decisions of the Committee of Ministers concerning the CDLR

The Bureau reviewed the decisions of the Committee of Ministers concerning the CDLR, as set out in document CDLR-Bu(2010)1. The Bureau examined Recommendations 270, 273, 274, 276, 278, 279 (2009) of the Congress. As concerns Recommendations 270(2009) “Transfrontier co-operation in Europe” and 278(2009) “Regions with legislative powers: towards multi-level governance”, which, inter alia, seek to draw the attention of the Ministerial Conference to those two issues, it agreed that the Secretariat should prepare draft elements for the CDLR to consider when drawing up and adopting its comments at the meeting in March. As concerns the other Recommendations, it concluded that it had no substantial comments to make to the Committee of Ministers and that the CDLR was to be advised accordingly.

The Bureau took note of the other decisions of the Committee of Ministers, including that the Ministers’ Deputies had adopted the terms of reference of the CDLR and its three sub-committees (LR-GG, LR-IC, LR-FS) in December 2009.


4.         Follow-up to the 16th Session of the Ministerial Conference

 

Implementation of the Utrecht Agenda

The Bureau discussed this item in order to prepare proposals to be submitted to the CDLR meeting in March 2010. The Chair of the CDLR congratulated the colleagues from the Dutch Ministry of the Interior for the successful organisation of the Ministerial Conference in Utrecht.

The Secretariat recalled that at Utrecht Ministers had voted to establish the priority to be given to the challenges the CDLR had identified in the field of local and regional democracy. In the Utrecht Declaration the Ministers request the Committee of Ministers to adopt annual programmes of activities for the Council of Europe in the years 2010-2013 enabling the full implementation of the Utrecht Agenda. On 25 November 2009 the Committee of Ministers adopted the Programme of Activities for year 2010 which includes the implementation of the Utrecht Agenda (2010) under Chapter III Democracy and Good Governance, Line of Action III.1.2. Local and regional democracy.

The Ministers at Utrecht also instructed their representatives in the CDLR to take forward the development of peer reviews as a new instrument for mutual learning between the member States. The Bureau discussed the modalities for further actions in introducing the peer review mechanism as a new working method, and it asked the Secretariat to prepare a document for the CDLR meeting in March about the concept, methodology and objectives of the peer review instrument.

Preliminary draft programme of activities 2010

The preliminary draft programme of activities was presented in the form of a table based on replies to the questionnaire launched in December 2009, and supplemented by proposals by the Secretariat. Fifteen member States and one observer had replied to the questionnaire within the deadline. The Secretariat had prepared the summary of the replies to the questionnaire for  discussion by the Bureau. 

The Bureau examined the preliminary draft programme of activities and agreed that the document for the CDLR at its meeting in March needs to regroup the proposed activities, define the time-frame for outputs and identify the partners in implementation.

Other follow-up to the Utrecht Declaration

The Minister of Public Administration and Local Government of Finland, Mrs Mari Kiviniemi, was entrusted by the Conference with developing concrete proposals for a partnership with the Committee of Ministers by the end of 2010. In order to discuss further the Declaration II from the Utrecht Declaration on the steps and measures to strengthen the co-operation further to the report on “How to enhance the work of the Council of Europe in the field of local and regional democracy” (The Kiviniemi Report), the Bureau had invited Mr Kimmo Collander from the Finnish Ministry of Finance to report on the recent development of the activities.


Mr Collander expressed satisfaction that the proposal for partnership with the Committee of Ministers is in line with the Secretary General’s intentions for the reform of the Council of Europe. This was confirmed last week during a telephone conversation between Mrs Kiviniemi and Mr Jagland.

The Bureau agreed that the further co-ordination of activities is required and that the proactive role of the Ministries is essential to ensure that the desired partnership between the Ministerial Conference and the Committee of Ministers is established.

The Secretariat was asked to prepare a briefing note on developments for the CDLR which should also cover the other steps and measures to be implemented further to the Utrecht Declaration. The Bureau also noted that the reviews decided in the Utrecht Declaration need to get underway and asked the Secretariat to prepare a note on this topic for consideration by the Bureau with a view to submitting proposals to the CDLR at its meeting in March.

5.         Communication relating to the CDLR and local and regional democracy

The Secretariat presented the document CDLR‑Bu(2010)6 concerning the state of affairs in communication in the field of local and regional democracy at the Council of Europe, and put forward ideas for further action to be discussed by the CDLR. The Secretariat recalled that the informal brainstorming meeting on communication would be held on 26 January, immediately after the Bureau meeting, to which all CDLR members were invited to participate.

Following the brainstorming meeting, the Secretariat is to prepare a memorandum for the CDLR in time for the March meeting.

6.        Information on other Council of Europe bodies

The Bureau took note of the information set out in document CDLR‑Bu(2010)4 + Addendum.

7.        Forum for the Future of Democracy and Workshop on e-voting systems – Information report by Mr P-H Philips, member of the Bureau

The Bureau took note of the Information report by Mr P-H Philips set out in document CDLR-Bu(2010)5. It also asked that the evaluation report on the functioning of the Forum be made available to the CDLR.

8.        Draft CDLR agenda (1-2 March 2010)

The Bureau examined, revised and approved the draft CDLR agenda set out in document CDLR‑Bu(2010)OJ1prov. It asked that a meeting of the Joint Working Group on the European Local Democracy Week be organised.

9.         Other business

None.

10.      Date of the next meeting

The date of the next meeting was confirmed for 5 July 2010.


APPENDIX 1

LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

CHAIRMAN / PRESIDENT

Mr Vyacheslav TOLKOVANOV, Director of the Directorate for International Relations, Investment Development and European Integration Issues, Ministry of Regional Development and Construction of Ukraine, 9, Velyka Zytomyrska street, KYIV, 01025

Tel: 38 044 590 4777; Fax: 38 044 278 6535; E-mail: [email protected]

VICE-CHAIR / VICE-PRESIDENT

Mr Auke van der GOOT, Senior Adviser, Europe and Local and Regional Governance Unit, Directorate-General for Governance and Kingdom Relations, Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, P.O Box 20011, NL - 2500 EA THE HAGUE

Tel: (31) 70 426 7386; Fax: (31) 70 426 7655; E-mail: [email protected]

OTHER MEMBERS / AUTRES MEMBRES

Mrs Desislava DRAGOVA, Senior Expert, Administrative-territorial structure and decentralisation Department, “Strategic planning of regional development and administrative territorial structure” Directorate General, Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, 17-19 St. Kiril I Metodii Str., 1202 SOFIA

Tel : (359) 2 9405223; Fax : (359) 2 9872517;

E-mail: [email protected]

Mrs Miroslava-Nina MIŠKOVIĆ, Head of Independent Division for International Cooperation, Ministry of Public Administration, Maksimirska 63, 10000 ZAGREB

Tel: (385) 1 2357 532; Fax: (385) 1 2357 609; E-mail: [email protected]

M. Paul-Henri PHILIPS, Adjoint du Directeur Général, Administration des pouvoirs locaux, Ministère de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale, Boulevard du Jardin Botanique, 20, B – 1035 BRUXELLES

Tel : (32) 2 800 32 77; Cel-phone: (32) 499 58 81 05; Fax :(32) 2 800 38 00;

E-mail : [email protected]

Mr Paul ROWSELL, Deputy Director, Local Democracy, Department for Communities and Local Government, 3/J1, Eland House, Bressenden Place, LONDON SW1E 5DU, GB

Tel: (44) 303 44 42568; Fax: (44) 20 7944 4109;

E-mail: [email protected]

INVITED PERSON / PERSONNE INVITEE

Mr Kimmo COLLANDER, Department for Municipal Affairs, Ministry of Finance, PO Box 28, FIN – 00023 GOVERNMENT

Tel: (358) (0)9 160 32209; E-mail: [email protected]

Apologised for absence/ Excusée:

Mme Séverine REYMUND, Bureau des structures territoriales, Direction Générale des Collectivités locales, Ministère de l'Intérieur, 1 bis, place des Saussaies, F - 75800 PARIS

Tél: (33) 01 49 27 31 78; Fax: (33) 01 49 27 49 79;

E-mail: [email protected]


SECRETARIAT

Mr Childerik SCHAAPVELD, Director of Democratic Institutions/ Directeur des institutions démocratiques, Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs / Direction générale de la démocratie et des affaires politiques

Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 20 60; Fax: +33 (0)3 88 41 27 84;

E-mail: [email protected]

Mr Alfonso ZARDI, Head of the Department of Local and Regional Democracy and Good Governance / Chef du Service de la démocratie locale et régionale et de la bonne gouvernance - Directorate of Democratic Institutions/ Direction des institutions démocratiques, Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs / Direction générale de la démocratie et des affaires politiques

Tel : +33 (0)3 88 41 39 06; Fax : +33 (0)3 88 41 27 84; E-mail : [email protected]

Mr Frank STEKETEE, Administrator / Administrateur – Directorate of Democratic Institutions/ Direction des institutions démocratiques, Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs / Direction générale de la démocratie et des affaires politiques

Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 39 61; Fax: +33 (0)3 88 41 27 84; E-mail: [email protected]

Mrs Vesna ATANASOVA, Administrator / Administratrice – Directorate of Democratic Institutions/ Direction des institutions démocratiques, Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs / Direction générale de la démocratie et des affaires politiques

Tel: +33 (0)3 88 41 31 68; Fax: +33 (0)3 88 41 27 84;

E-mail: [email protected]

Ms Severina SPASSOVA, Directorate of Democratic Institutions / Direction des institutions démocratiques, Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs / Direction générale de la démocratie et des affaires politiques

Tel : +33 (0)3 90 21 52 72 ; Fax : +33 (0)3 88 41 27 84 ;

E-mail : [email protected]


APPENDIX 2

AGENDA

1.

Opening of the meeting

2.

Adoption of the agenda

[CDLR-Bu(2010)OJ1 rev.2]

3.

Decisions of the Committee of Ministers concerning the CDLR

[CDLR-Bu(2010)1]

4.

Follow-up to the 16th Session of the Ministerial Conference

-    Implementation of the Utrecht Agenda

[CDLR-Bu(2010)2]

-    Preliminary draft programme of activities 2010                                                                                                                    2010-2013

[CDLR-Bu(2010)2 Addendum I]

-   Replies to the questionnaire on          activities to meet the challenges identified         in the Utrecht Agenda

[CDLR-Bu(2010)2 Addendum II]

    -   Other follow-up to the Utrecht Declaration

-                  

[CDLR-Bu(2010)3]

5.

Communication relating to the CDLR and local and regional democracy

[CDLR-Bu(2010)6]

6.

Information on other Council of Europe bodies

[CDLR-Bu(2010)4 + Addendum]

7.

Forum for the Future of Democracy and Workshop on e-voting systems - Information report by

Mr P-H Philips, member of the Bureau

[CDLR-Bu(2010)5]

8.

Draft CDLR agenda (1-2 March 2010)

[CDLR(2010)OJ1prov]

9.

Other business

10.

Date of the next meeting (5 July 2010)