Prime Minister Janez Janša attends plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions - Hoofdinhoud

Prime Minister Janez Janša today attended a plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions via videoconference. The discussion focused on key current topics and issues faced during the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU.

In particular, the Prime Minister highlighted measures to recover and build resilience, both in the fight against the epidemic and the adoption and implementation of national recovery and resilience plans, activities related to the green and digital transition, efforts to build strategic autonomy in key areas, and the Conference on the Future of Europe. On the question of how to bring the EU closer to the people, the Prime Minister emphasised the need to respect subsidiarity and to take into account the fact that the EU member states are representative democracies.

In order to strengthen trust in the European project, citizens must truly experience the EU as a space for cooperation and an area in which we can learn from one another.

Janez JanšaPrime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia

Janez JanšaPrime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia

With regard to subsidiarity, a greater involvement of the local and regional levels is needed, and the Committee of the Regions must be relied on even more in this process. It is necessary to apply the gradation of the level of political powers and responsibilities for resolving common issues, taking greater account of the bottom-up principle, i.e. from the local and regional political level through the national to the common, EU level. It is also necessary to take into account more consistently the distinction between representation by elected representatives of power and other representatives of different interests.

Their legitimacy of representation and powers and responsibilities are higher than those of unelected representatives of various partial interests. In order to strengthen trust in the European project, citizens must truly experience the EU as a space for cooperation, an area in which people can learn from one another about the solutions that are most effective and focus on the problems that cannot be effectively addressed at local, regional or national level.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the issue of EU enlargement and the achievements of the recent summit of the EU and Western Balkan partners, which include a greater focus on the strategic aspect of enlargement and the agreement on regular, annual summits.