20/10/09

By Euclid Network supports EC's public consultation

Euclid Network (EN) supports the announcement of the European Commission's (EC) public consultation on the review of the financial regulation, following its campaign to reform European funding for the third sector, but warns it is just the beginning.

The campaign began back in January 2009 when Filippo Addarii, EN executive director, met with DG Budget, the equivalent of Treasury of the EC, calling for an open consultation on the review of the Financial Regulation, the rules in which the European Union distribute grants and contracts.

EN has since taken the initiative to launch its own 10-month campaign and consultation, which has resulted in 10 recommendations on how European funding should be reformed.

The recommendations were based on the evidence submitted to EN by third sector leaders and networks from across Europe.

The recommendations, which include well-known obstacles such as high levels of administrative jargon and non-profit rule, were released last week and presented to the EC, DG Education and Culture's civil society working group on European funding, which is chaired by EN.

'This is just the beginning. Our consultation has shown the changes that our sector needs and now is the opportunity to get these changes in the new text' said Filippo Addarii, executive director of Euclid Network.

The consultation has drawn interest from across Europe, including national governments and European officials.

The next steps of EN's campaign are to continue to gather evidence for the EC and gather the support of MEPs and national governments.

EN's executive director Filippo Addarii will work with Roshan Di Puppo, director of Social Platform, and European officials to draft a final report.

For the first time the European Commission and civil society representatives are working together to make European funding regulation work more effectively.

This will then be submitted to DG Budget, which has committed itself to consider all recommendations and introduce them in the new text as appropriate.

The text will then undergo fine tuning during the first quarter of 2010, followed by its formal adoption by the end of the year.

Home     More News


Other stories you may find of interest:

Dilnot Fairer Care Funding report: the sector verdict
The Commission on Funding of Care and Support has presented its findings to the Government in its report Fairer Care Funding, and the sector has generally welcomed the report, albeit with many qualifications. The independent commission, set up by the Government last July, was asked to recommend a fair and sustainable funding system for adult social care in England.

Sector verdict on the Open Public Services White Paper
The Government's modernisation of public services and promise to give people choice and control over the services they use, and end the ‘get what you’re given’ culture, has been met with sector responses that range from the lukewarm to ice cold. ACEVO warned about facing down vested interests, NCVO complemented the paper on a useful start but also the need for a level playing field, a message reiterated by the Social Enterprise Coalition in more forceful terms, and CAF noted that commissioners at all levels need to be truly empowered to value social impact...

Report: Big Society has lost sight of economic reform
A report released today by the Social Enterprise Coalition, the national body for social enterprise, says we have lost sight of the need for economic reform in the current Big Society debate about public and voluntary sector cuts, and citizenship. The Conservative Party’s 2010 manifesto outlined the need for broader economic reform in addition to a change to civil society. Time for Social Enterprise says Government needs to bring the two together and clarify the role business will play in the Big Society, which has so far been missing.