Translation of "Rapport sur l'équilibre régional " (French → English) :

The Schroedter report supported the Commission on several points: the need to maintain a cohesion policy based on strength, solidarity and partnership to cope with enlargement and persistent inequalities within the Union; not to drop below 0.45% of Union GDP so as not to call into question the credibility of cohesion policy; the need to adapt cohesion policy to the conditions which will prevail in an enlarged Union; the need to promote sustainable development, territorial cohesion in Europe and improve the polycentric, harmonious and balanced development of the Union, in accordance with the guidelines of the ESDP; support for areas w ...[+++]ith specific handicaps (with a special mention of the outermost regions); greater cross-border cooperation; opposition to any renationalisation of cohesion policy; the importance of partnership and the need to reflect on tripartite contracts with the regions and the Member States.

There have been discussions about the importance of regional balance, representations on various aspects of the business of Parliament and for each region to be properly represented and to have the input of people of that region because regions are different in a number of ways and are similar in a number of ways.

The Schroedter report supported the positions of the Commission on a number of points: the need to maintain a strong cohesion policy based on solidarity and partnership, in the context of enlargement and the persisting inequalities within the EU; not going below 0.45% of the Union's GDP in order not to challenge the credibility of cohesion policy; the need to adapt cohesion policy to the conditions which will prevail in the enlarged Union; the need to promote sustainable development and territorial cohesion in Europe and reinforce the polycentric, harmonious and balanced development of the Union, in accordance with the guidelines of t ...[+++]he ESDP; support for areas with specific handicaps (with special mention of the outermost regions); strengthening cross-border cooperation; opposition to any renationalisation of cohesion policy; the importance of partnership and the value of considering tripartite agreements with the regions and Member States.

The special socio-economic position of the OD, as described in the progress report on the Poseidom programme (see IP(94)492 of 6 June 1994), makes it essential that rum production be maintained, since it underpins the social and economic balance of the areas concerned.

The Commission believes that the solutions it has put forward in its report to the Telecommunications Council will allow: = Liberalisation to proceed by January 1998 on the basis of a commitment by Telecommunication organisations (TOs) and regulators to rebalance tariff structures during the preparatory period; = Special arrangements and transitional periods to be put in place for the peripheral regions and countries with small and less developed networks; = The development of a balanced international environment through the current ...[+++] GATT negotiations; and = Discussion on the future role of public infrastructure with a Green Paper by 1995.

These coefficients are established in such a way as to ensure that the existing balance both between A and B quotas and between regions is maintained.