The members of the Bureau of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities met in Strasbourg, France, on 5 December 2022, and discussed, among other things, the preparation of the 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe to be held on 16-17 May in Reykjavik, Iceland.
The Bureau approved the agenda of the 44th Session of the Congress and, in view of the Reykjavik Summit, Bernd Vöhringer (Germany, EPP/CCE), President of the Chamber of Local Authorities, and Harald Sonderegger, (Austria, EPP/CCE), President of the Chamber of Regions, were instructed to prepare a report on the future of the Council of Europe and the Congress' contribution. In addition, Xavier Cadoret, France (SOC/G/PD), First Vice-President of the Chamber of Local Authorities, and Gunn Marit Helgesen, (Norway, EPP/CCE), First Vice-President of the Chamber of Regions, have been appointed co-rapporteurs on the localisation of sustainable development objectives.
The Bureau members held an exchange of views with Ambassador Svetlana Geleva, Permanent Representative of Northern Macedonia to the Congress, Chair of the Committee of Ministers' Rapporteur Group on Democracy (GR-DEM). "The dialogue between the Congress and the Committee of Ministers is essential in strengthening the coherence of the Council of Europe," she said, praising the Congress' "contagious commitment" to territorial democracy and its contribution to the Council of Europe's action plans. In particular, the GR-DEM President stressed the importance of the Congress' contribution to the 4th Summit in bringing the voice of local and regional authorities to the organisation's triptych: human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
Furthermore, the Bureau reiterated its concern regarding the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine and reaffirmed its support for Ukrainian local and regional authorities, notably through the Citiesforcities platform and the Alliance for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
In addition, the Bureau approved the mandate for a report by the Governance Committee on the role of parliamentary second chambers in Europe in strengthening the representation of regions and local authorities.
