Activities of Rovana PLUMB related to 2021/2254(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on a long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas – towards stronger, connected, resilient and prosperous rural areas by 2040
Amendments (24)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the Commission’s presentcommunication of 30/6/2021 of its long- term vision for rural areas;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Regrets the fact that theis long-term vision was not presented before the conclusion of the negotiations for the regulations on the cohesion policy and common agricultural policy for 2021-2027; recalls that synergies between these funds and other relevant EU and, national fundand regional means are crucial;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Invites the Council to clearly express in its conclusions the need to act forddress the problems rural areas are facing;
Amendment 18 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Recalls that EU cohesion policy, which seeks to promote the economic, social and territorial cohesion of the Union and involves all levels of governance, is vitally important to rural areas,; acknowledges the important role of agriculture and involves all levels of governancsustainable agriculture;
Amendment 26 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6 a. Regrets that moves to integrate the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) into the framework of the Common Provisions Regulation (CPR) for Cohesion Policy 2021-2027 were unsuccessful; believes that bringing EAFRD under the umbrella of the CPR, together with a multi-fund approach, will help the rural development;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 b (new)
Paragraph 6 b (new)
6 b. Calls on the Commission to make sure that each Member State’s strategic plan under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), as well as programmes under the current Cohesion policy programmes are drawn up in line with the objectives of the FIT for 55 Package and Green Deal, the Farm-to-Fork, and the Biodiversity Strategies, and that those plans and programmes express each region’s characteristics;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Paragraph 6 c (new)
Amendment 44 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Underlines the fact that the main objective of the long-term vision should be to fight depopulation, ageing and rural abandonment, to make rural areas more attractive, including through investment in social infrastructure and the provision of services, such as childcare, care centres for the elderly and those in need of it, schools and after-schools, healthcare, economic diversification, job creation and innovative mobility solutions;
Amendment 52 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Calls on the Commission to set up a EU system of rural employment grants which will enable Member States and their regions to reverse the exodus from the country side and persuade remote workers to relocate to rural areas with access to nature, cheaper rent and a lower carbon footprint;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Underlines the importance of smart specialisation strategies for the future of rural areas, with particular regard to young people and women, and to innovation, knowledge sharing and cooperation, including the Start-up Village Forum; achieving gender equality, as stipulated in the current CPR, is an important step forward that could help us address demographic challenges in the regions, while promoting inclusion of women and raising the female employment rate;
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Welcomes a new Rural Pact launched by the Commission on 20/12/2021 that aims at engaging actors at EU, national, regional and local level, in order to support the shared goals of the Vision, foster economic, social and territorial cohesion and give an answer to the common aspirations of the rural communities, by encouraging stakeholders and actors to join the Rural Pact Community and share reflections and ideas on its implementation and future development;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8 b. Notes that the Art. 10 of the Regulation (EU) 2021/1058 on the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund includes support for disadvantaged regions and areas, such as those with geographical or demographic handicaps;
Amendment 66 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 c (new)
Paragraph 8 c (new)
8 c. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to guarantee that the initiative on the long-term vision for rural areas includes practical solutions and means of support to deal with demographic changes faced by rural areas, and reiterates the need to implement integrated projects based on the programmes under EAFRD, cohesion policy, the CAP national strategic plans and instruments laid down in the national recovery and resilience plans;
Amendment 77 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Stresses that renewable energy production is also an opportunity for rural areas to combat energy poverty and generate energy self-sufficiency; furthermore, underlines a greater acceptance of renewable energy production facilities if the rural areas were to be included in the sharing of the revenues generated by the production of renewable energy;
Amendment 86 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Believes that connections between rural and urban areas mustshould be addressed in a complementary manner in order to implement rural strategies and action plans accordingly; underlines the importance of partnerships across rural areas and remote rural areas in particular; emphasises the importance of fighting the digital divide between urban and rural areas, especially as regards high-speed broadband connectivity and, the promotion of digital skills and upskilling;
Amendment 89 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Notes that the European Territorial Cooperation (Interreg) projects are creating cross-border best practices to come up with innovative approaches for an integrated territorial development; points out that particular attention should be paid to infrastructure and cross-border cooperation in rural border regions;
Amendment 91 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. Emphasises the need to improve the public transport infrastructure and service system in rural areas, ensuring the development of sustainable mobility solutions that reduce travel times and of the number of connections between urban and peri-urban and rural areas; notes that shared mobility connecting rural communities with transport hubs, particularly bus and rail stations, can boost the quality of life in rural areas;
Amendment 92 #
10 c. Highlights the diversity of rural areas and the crucial importance of tailor-made territorial approaches in implementing the long-term vision, primarily in less developed, remote rural areas and outermost regions;
Amendment 102 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12 a. Welcomes the intention by Commission to take stock, by mid – 2023, of what actions financed by the EU and Member States have been carried out for rural areas. This exercise will be included in a public report, with the scope of identifying the areas where enhanced support and finances are still needed, including the way forward, based on the EU Rural Action Plan;
Amendment 104 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 b (new)
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12 b. Draws attention to the particular challenges faced by rural regions impacted by structural change or the transformation processes needed for the green transition, such as in energy production or the automotive industry;
Amendment 105 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 c (new)
Paragraph 12 c (new)
12 c. Notes that rural tourism regions are coping with changing travel patterns due to COVID-19 and climate change; is of the view that cycling, hiking, mycology, wellness tourism, gastronomy, community-based arts or arts workshops and exhibition centres could be models of further sustainable tourism development in rural areas; furthermore, considers that the contribution made by cultural heritage and, artistic and creative professionals to building a sustainable and prosperous future and to improving tourist attractiveness of rural areas will also improve the economic well-being of these communities;
Amendment 106 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 d (new)
Paragraph 12 d (new)
12 d. Considers that, to achieve a just twin transition by leaving no one and no region behind , we need tools to ensure "innovation ecosystems" in each territory that offer opportunities for allentrepreneurs, rural micro-enterprises and SMEs, thus boosting these small rural businesses; this should go hand in hand with a sufficient provision of training, including in digital skills and other soft skills related to open innovation, interregional and international cooperation, and inter- cultural communication;
Amendment 107 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 12 e (new)
Paragraph 12 e (new)
12 e. Welcomes the increased support for bottom-up initiatives such as LEADER /CLLD– which define the role of local action groups – and "smart villages", and encourages further use of the lessons learned from these initiatives; draws attention, in this context, to the benefits of an innovation-based regional development, focussed on local skills and engagement; furthermore, competent bodies at local, regional and national level should be made aware of innovative ideas from local stakeholders and support them where possible.