Absorption of EU funds and EU directive on posted workers dominate talks between EU Commissioner Corina Cretu and the President of the European Committee of the Regions Karl-Heinz Lambertz.
The absorption of European funds was the main topic of discussion between the Romanian representative in the European Commission Corina Cretu, who is holding the Regional Policy portfolio, and the President of the European Committee of the Regions Karl-Heinz Lambertz. After meeting with the Prime Minister Mihai Tudose, the Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu and the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea, the European official stated that Romania stands big chances of having absorbed, by the end of the year, one billion Euros from the development and cohesion funds.
Against this background, the European Commissioner held talks with Bucharest officials on the steps that should be taken in order to ensure a better absorption of European funds, given that Romania has not been able to do much in this respect after its 2007 EU accession. At the same time, Corina Cretu warned about the slow pace of project preparation and implementation, in particular in fields such as transportation, waste management, public procurement and research infrastructure. European Commissioner Corina Cretu:
"All national management and control authorities in charge of the 23 billion Euro budget allocated to Romania in the 2014-2020 programming period have been accredited. This summer, the Commission has already reimbursed 95 million for initiatives, for SMEs and for technical assistance, and is currently analysing invoices of 350 million Euros, which are to be paid soon."
Also, Corina Cretu held talks with citizens, accompanied by the President of the European Committee of the Regions Karl-Heinz Lambertz. Mr. Lambertz referred to worker mobility in the EU and said that a solution must be found to the issue of unemployment, which is currently facing many countries in Europe. Karl-Heinz Lambertz openly stood in favour of amending the Directive concerning posting, which allows workers to work in a different EU country, sometimes in conditions that are improper. Mr. Lambertz has also stated that, in his opinion, a massive transfer of workers from one country to another is not necessarily the best solution for cohesion.
As regards posting, during the recent visit paid to Bucharest by the President of France Emmanuel Macron, Romania's President Klaus Iohannis also stood for a change in the directive. The head of state said there should be a tighter and more integrated cooperation between all the social systems of all the EU countries.
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