The President of the Chamber of Regions, Gunn Marit Helgesen, speaking at the round table on "The State of Local and Regional Democracy in Europe" in Brussels on 27 June 2019, highlighted the progress made in local and regional democracy as a result of the Congress' work.
“The core mission of the Congress is monitoring of the situation of local and regional democracy in the Council of Europe member states and the application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government through the adoption of reports, recommendations and resolutions by country,” Gunn Marit Helgesen explained. “All member States are regularly monitored on an equal footing based on transparent criteria which guarantee the impartiality and independence of the Congress monitoring procedure. Post-monitoring activities also allow national authorities to be supported in the implementation of these recommendations,” she added.
Ms Helgesen also mentioned a certain number of recurrent problems with the application of the Charter: the lack of direct applicability of the European Charter of Local Self-Government in national legal systems, insufficient financial resources, misuse of administrative resources, limited allocation of powers and lack of consultation by the central government. “These problems are symptomatic of a broader trend towards recentralisation”, she alerted. In order to take into account recent developments and provide updated interpretations of the Charter's standards, the Congress Monitoring Committee has mandated the Group of Independent Experts on the Charter of the Congress to provide an up-to-date interpretation of its provisions.
In addition, speaking about the Congress’ election observation activities, Ms Helgesen added “The Congress has developed a specific methodology based on the participation of observers who are themselves local and regional elected officials, which constitutes a very enriching transfer of experience.”. Over the last 25 years of election observation, the Congress has developed a strategy to address recurring transversal issues, such as the accuracy of voters’ lists, misuse of administrative resources or the voting rights of internally displaced persons and migrants”.
Finally, Ms Helgesen welcomed the work carried out by the Congress in co-operation with other key actors such as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe or the Venice Commission. “Strengthening co-operation with partners through the sharing of expertise and field experiences is on the agenda of the Congress,” she concluded.
- See also the news : Brussels: The European Committee of the Regions and the Council of Europe’s Congress celebrate their 25th anniversary in Brussels, on 27 June
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