Also on #CoRplenary agenda: Conference on the Future of Europe, the EU-UK relationship and the energy crisis
Ukrainian local leaders will address the European Committee of the Regions’ plenary on 27 April from 1:30pm-4pm (CET). From Ukraine, the mayors of Kyiv, Lviv, Mariupol and Melitopol, as well the leader of Kharkiv District Council will join the EU’s local and regional leaders to explain the current situation facing their cities and how the EU, its regions and cities can best help in providing humanitarian support and protecting Ukrainian refugees. The European Commissioners for regional policy, Elisa Ferreira, and crisis management, Janez Lenarčič, as well as the Mayor of Rome, will also join the debate, which will be streamed live. The Committee will then adopt a resolution calling for the immediate release of kidnapped Ukrainian mayors and tools to be put at the disposal of local authorities to help them to shelter refugees.
Following that debate, representatives of the EU’s regions and cities will then discuss the EU’s relationship with the UK with European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič (4pm-5pm) and adopt recommendations on how to strengthen ties at the sub-national level.
On the second day of the plenary, on Thursday 28 April from 9am-10am, the CoR members will hold a discussion with Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President of European Commission for Democracy and Demography, Domènec Ruiz Devesa MEP, Rapporteur for the European Parliament’s Resolution on the implementation of citizenship education, and Professor Inge Sieben from Tilburg University on the importance of promoting European democratic values through education to foster EU citizenship. This debate will contribute to the ongoing discussion with the citizens within the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe, and for which the final report will be presented on 9 May, Europe Day, to the presidents of the EU institutions at an event at which the 30 regional and local delegates will be represented by the CoR’s President, Apostolos Tzitzikostas.
The ongoing energy crisis will be another leading theme of the plenary session, with the adoption of a package of energy and Green Deal recommendations that aim at ending the EU’s dependence on Russian oil and gas – and at protecting citizens from record energy prices by accelerating the EU’s transition to clean energy. The Committee will also adopt a resolution on REPowerEU, stressing that the only future-proof energy-security strategy is energy sovereignty.