Cities and regions request the EU-institutions improvement of multi-level governance

On the 5th of July, cities and regions involved in the Covenant of Mayors called the EU institutions for more effective multi-level governance both at EU, national and local level to properly deliver on the Green Deal. They sent comprehensive letters summarising key-recommendations to the president of the European Commission Ursula Von der Leyen, to the president of the EU Council Charles Michel and to the president of the EU parliament Roberta Metsola.

Through those letters, the CoM board asked for:

• The early involvement of local authorities in discussions regarding new legislation;
• Increased human and financial resources for local authorities;
• Consolidation of the numerous EU urban initiatives to help local authorities deliver on the
  EU Green Deal.

Those key-requests are of utmost importance to achieve EU climate targets, as the implementation of all EU policies takes place at the local level, and even more because local authorities are often more ambitious than Member States and the European Union in putting into place climate and energy policies.

One of the key tool in terms of efficient multilevel governance, is to ensure the participation of local authorities into the National Energy and climate plans (NECPs) drafting process. But, despite the European Commission emphasising the importance of such dialogue in its guidelines to Member States from December 2022, only a limited number of Members States have structurally involved local authorities in the drafting of NECPs. The NECPs must provide space for vertical integration of climate and energy policies. They should be based on a methodology that is compatible with the one used at local and regional level, ensuring that the transition to climate neutrality is monitored in a coherent way across different levels of governance. To achieve this objective, CoM board identified a couple of possible adjustments and interventions in key legislative pieces.

Overall the letters are opening the dialogue with EU institutions to improve support to local authorities and to enhance their inclusion in the nation and European policy processes.