(09 October 2017) – Today the Commission publishes the 7th Cohesion Report, taking the pulse of EU regions, drawing lessons from cohesion spending during the crisis years and setting the scene for Cohesion Policy after 2020.
Analysing the current state of the EU’s economic, social and territorial cohesion, the Cohesion Report brings our Union under a magnifying glass: Europe’s economy is bouncing back but disparities persist between and within our Member States.
Public investment in the EU is still below pre-crisis levels but regions and Member States need even more support to take up the challenges identified in the reflection paper on the future of EU finances; the digital revolution, globalisation, demographic change and social cohesion, economic convergence and climate change.
The report does not pre-empt the final proposal of the Commission but it fuels the discussion on Cohesion Policy after 2020. It suggests an EU-wide policy serving three main purposes: harnessing globalisation, leaving no one behind and supporting structural reforms.