BRIDGEforEU adopted!

Based on the Commission’s amended proposal, the support of the Parliament, the Committee of the Regions, the Economic and Social Committee and plenty of stakeholders; thanks to the work of the Belgian Presidency in the first half of 2024 and the fulfilled promise of the Hungarian Presidency on its boost; and following the conclusion of the meeting of the Permanent Representatives Committee in October 2024, inviting the Presidency of the Council to open negotiations with the European Parliament, the BRIDGEforEU proposal was finally adopted by the Council in March 2025 and by the plenary of the European Parliament on 7 May.

Find the Regulation published in the Official Journal of the EU in your language

And this is the news in Panorama, DG Regio’s magazine with “Stories from Regional and Urban Policies”: An important milestone for Europe’s border regions: the BRIDGEforEU Regulation has been adopted, paving the way for smoother cross-border cooperation. From healthcare access to event planning, life at the border is set to become simpler, fairer and more connected for 150 million citizens… Read more

Highlights:

• Member States will establish CB Coordination Points to facilitate cooperation and communication between border regions. They will serve as single points of contact for citizens, businesses, and public authorities, providing information and support on CB issues, while also gathering complaints about border obstacles.
• Simplified Procedures for resolving CB obstacles, making it easier for citizens and businesses to navigate the complexities of CBC.
• A CB Facilitation Tool will provide a structured approach to identifying and resolving CB obstacles. It will be available to all Member States and will help to facilitate cooperation and communication between border regions.
• Member States will be required to submit annual reports to the Commission on the implementation of the Regulation, providing information on the number of CB obstacles resolved, the types of obstacles encountered, and the overall impact of the regulation on CBC.

 

On 27-28/1/2025, the European Parliament’s REGI Committee unanimously confirmed the outcome of interinstitutional negotiations on a “Mechanism to resolve legal and administrative obstacles in a cross-border context” (REGI/10/01043; 2018/0198(COD) COM(2018)0373 – C8-0228/2018. The rapporteur, MEP Sandro Gozi (Renew), has revealed himself to be a strong and successful promoter of CBC.

The Council adopted the BRIDGEforEU at the end of March. The Parliament plays a central role in EU lawmaking, but voting in the hemicycle is only a part of the picture. Before those big votes, MEPs work to improve proposals drafted by the EU Commission. The Committee on Regional Development (REG) voted on this dossier at its meeting on Wednesday 9 April 2025 and adopted a draft recommendation for second reading of the Border Regions’ instrument for development and growth (BRIDGEforEU) – 2018/0198(COD) – 17102/1/2024 – C10-0057/2025 – Rapporteur: Sandro Gozi (Renew).

Then, on 6 May 2025, the European Parliament has adopted a Regulation “on a Border Regions’ instrument for development and growth”. Entry into force will occur 20 days after publication in the Official Journal (@EURLex). It establishes a “framework to facilitate identifying and resolving cross-border obstacles”. A powerful tool to sew together borders in Europe, promoting the development of these laboratories of European Integration.

We hope this will become a new milestone for European CBC, like the first euroregion in 1958, the first Interreg programmes in 1990, and the EGTC in 2006. Many people at the EU institutions, national, regional and local authorities, and many more stakeholders have been working since 2015 to make this possible. Congratulations to all of them!

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