On 7 March, the 12th meeting of the Green Deal Going Local (GDGL) working group adopted its 2023 roadmap and discussed ways to boost green investments and innovative financing to allow local and regional authorities to push the climate-neutral transition forward. The 2023 roadmap includes three main political objectives: reinforcing multi-level governance, mobilising financial resources and moving towards a fairer Green Deal.
Rafał Trzaskowski (PL/EPP), Mayor of Warsaw and Chair of the ENVE commission and of the Green Deal Going Local working group, said: " Local and regional leaders play a key role in delivering the Green Deal on the ground. We are strongly committed to diversify away from Russian energy imports, help citizens and SMEs with their energy bills, and cooperate with private local investors to boost sustainable investment in order to meet the climate neutrality objectives. However, the energy transition can only happen if we have proper financial and technical resources. Unfortunately, in many Member States, we cannot count on help from national governments. That is why cities and regions reiterate their call for direct EU funding to make public buildings more energy-efficient, public transport greener, and renewable energy more accessible to our citizens."
Hanna Zdanowska (PL/EPP), Mayor of Łódź, said: "The green transformation is a great opportunity to modernise public infrastructure and strengthen local economies. But in order to invest, we need adequate financial resources. Unfortunately, most local governments are not able to generate sufficient funds to implement their ecological aspirations. For instance, to realise our dreams of a green Łódź, we need at least EUR 1.7 billion by 2030 for 77 projects, of which 65 will not be implemented without external financial support. Today, the flexibility of Polish local governments is very limited, with repayable financial mechanisms currently not available to us. Therefore, I call for non-repayable funds for the implementation of climate goals."
In a debate on the future of the Green Deal, the European Commission's Elisa Roller announced a series of upcoming proposals, including a net-zero plan for industry, a proposal for a critical raw materials act and a plan to create a hydrogen bank, in addition to the update of the EU's taxonomy expected in June 2023.
Members exchanged views on the revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) from a Green Deal perspective with European Commission's DG BUDG Bernhard Windisch. CoR members called for additional funds to accelerate the climate-neutral transition and to increase direct budget lines for local and regional authorities – following the example of the EU Missions in Horizon Europe. The CoR's COTER commission is currently working on an opinion entitled 'Mid-term review of the Multiannual Financial Framework: the regional and local viewpoint'. The opinion, whose rapporteur is Thomas Habermann (DE/EPP) , District Commissioner of Rhön-Grabfeld, is to be adopted in May 2023.
In an exchange on how to bridge the Green Deal funding gap, The EU's CINEA agency presented specific programmes that support cities and regions in delivering green projects on the ground, such as the European City Facility and the newly launched Green Assist, a new investment advisory service under InvestEU . Green Assist is funded by the LIFE programme and aims to help establish a pipeline for green investment projects with a high impact.
Dana Eleftheriadou from the European Commission's DG GROW presented the Intelligent Cities Challenge, an instrument to develop Local Green Deals, boost local economies and support SMEs in reskilling and upskilling the workforce with the aim of delivering the green and digital transitions.
The next meeting of the GDGL working group will take place on 30 May in Brussels.
Background:
The working documents of the meeting are available here. You can also watch the meeting here.
Green Deal Going Local is a flagship initiative of the European Committee of the Regions that aims at placing cities and regions at the heart of the EU’s climate-neutral transition.