EU Funds in Current and Future Budgets

1. EU Funds inCurrent and Future Budgets James Sharples, MBO 15 May 2012

2. Contents • A word on the MBO • Trans-national projects – general principles • Current budget: remaining TN opportunities • Finding partners • Next budget: • Regional policy • Trans-national

3. The MBO

4. Sectoral v regional

5. TN funding • Awarded by EC, arms-length secretariats or national bodies • Applications are in response to regular calls for proposals • Typical project types: demonstration/innovative projects; information campaigns and dissemination; research studies; exchanges staff and best practice; conferences/seminars. • Trans-national requirement (except…): trans-national in nature; shared priority of trans-national partnership with genuine interaction and transferable result • Typically minimum 3 MS; unofficially often larger; some partners small involvement • If unsure of fit – ask. Commission wants new ideas and applicants. • Lead or follower? • Growing Merseyside and North West good practice

6. Youth in Action • EUR 885m 2007-13. • Age group 13-30; non-formal, learning by doing, disadvantaged groups • Exchanges, voluntary work, youth workers, innovation, small youth projects (devised by young people), youth information campaigns, youth-policy maker dialogue, large innovative projects • Grants: budget ceiling, % co-financing OR flat rates and lump sums (can be aggregated); EUR low 10s k to 100k; 65-100% costs supported • Partners not necessarily needed • 5 calls per year! To British council. 1 Feb, 1 Apr, 1 June, 1 Sept, 1 Nov every year • Detailed MBO report – July 2011

7. Project examples • Youth exchange: "Slainte agus An Oige" project in Omagh, Northern Ireland, involving 40 young people from Ireland, Lithuania, Poland and the United Kingdom. The exchange aimed at providing young people with a framework for a healthy lifestyle by focusing on the benefits of participating in outdoor activities. The programme was a combination of practical activities where young people worked in teams trying out different sports, complemented with a number of workshops centred on the debate around the advantages of sport on the body. The project also allowed for each country group of participants to make a presentation on their country’s culture and history. The emphasis of the programme was to build self-esteem and acceptance of other people, open their minds, learn about other cultures and value different countries. • Youth initiative: twelve young people from Turkey developed a project aimed at giving basic computer skills to children who are obliged to work in the streets. The group cooperated with a local NGO that works regularly with these children. Based on discussion with the children, the group learned about their situation and asked them what they would like to do; the idea of the computer training was born there. The training in computers lasted three months and the project reached 70 children.

8. LIFE+ • Dedicated environment fund • LIFE + Environment Policy and Governance • any innovative or demonstration environmental project • 12 sub-themes: climate change, water, air, soil, the urban environment, noise, chemicals, the environment and health, waste and natural resources, forests, innovation and strategic approaches. • cleaning up of various media, waste management, life-cycle thinking

9. LIFE+ • LIFE + Nature and Biodiversity – management of Natura sites, habitats and species • LIFE + Information and Communication - spreading information about environmental issues • Annual UK ringfence (EUR 21.6m 2012) – not being spent! • No partners needed • EUR 200k to EUR 7m, average EUR 1m; 50% co-financing • Project duration 2-5 years. Current call: deadline 26 Sept. Next call spring 2011

10. Project examples • ‘LiveWell for LIFE’ project. UK-NGO lead; trans-national project. To reduce GHG emissions from the EU food supply chain by demonstrating country-specific sustainable diets for partner states, promoting a supportive policy environment, developing pathways for the implementation of sustainable diets, and disseminating this knowledge widely across the EU. Cost-benefit analysis reports produced for these diets to highlight the social and economic impacts. • UK NGO lead (ECT Group); UK-only project. Providing a sustainable economic framework for the responsible disposal of dead fluorescent lamps. Engaging with organisations for whom the safe disposal of such waste would normally be economically unfeasible. The the part-used lamps to be distributed to local schools. Economic and education benefits to those schools and community groups participating in the project.

11. Education and training • Lifelong Learning Programme • Four programmes on school education (Comenius), higher education (Erasmus), vocational training (Leonardo da Vinci) and adult education (Grundtvig) • Next calls mainly autumn 2012 with likely deadline February 2013 • Bids to ECOTEC generally

12. Leonardo • EUR 1.75 bn • Innovative vocational training • Vocational training placements abroad • Transfer of knowledge on vocational training • Recognition of qualifications and competences gained • EUR 1.75 bn for 2007-13. • Mobility visits: 2 MSs, flat rates and unit costs • Small co-operation projects (partnership visits): 3 MSs, lump sum based on person-visits (up to EUR 25k) • Large transfer of innovation projects: 3 MSs, 75% costs supported up to EUR 150k annually • 2 years’ maximum duration • Funded preparatory visits

13. Grundtvig and Comenius • More and better: • mobility of people in education • cooperation between education providers • development and transfer of innovative practices • teaching approaches • European dimension of teacher training (Comenius) • learning of a second foreign language (Comenius) • access to adult education for vulnerable social groups and/or without basic qualifications (Gruntvig) • EUR 25k per project and 75% costs supported • EUR 280m (Grundtvig) and EUR 0.91 bn (Comenius) for 2007-13

14. Project example – Merseyside Police • 2008 call. European Policing Exchange • Staff exchange programme with other EU police forces. • EUR 49k. Merseyside exchanges with forces in Norway, Sweden, Holland, Poland, France and Turkey. • Exposing staff to innovative good practices that could be replicated in Merseyside. • 36 staff members; 1 week with each host. Internal call for participants • Mobility project strand of Leonardo

15. Crime prevention • Prevention and fight against crime • EUR 605m 07-13; year-on-year increase • Law enforcement, crime prevention and criminology, protection witnesses and victims • (Non-)organised, trans-national and local • Juvenile, urban and environmental crimes; restorative justice • 90% co-financing; average grant EUR 300k • National and trans-national • Undersubscribed! • Main 2012/2013 combined call final quarter 2012

16. Project example – Merseyside Police • International prisoner debriefing programme. • 2008 call. EUR 300k grant. • Working with Polish police to get intelligence from Polish criminals in Merseyside prisons convicted of serious organised crime or terrorism offences. • Gathering intelligence on international criminal activity and organised crime networks.

17. Other JHA funds • European Refugee Fund and European Integration Fund • National (UKBA) and « Community Actions » (EC) • Reception and integration: social, civic, cultural, employment • 80%/50% co-financing, grant EUR 40-400k • 2 remaining ERF and EIF CA calls: next late summer 2012? UKBA EIF call closes tomorrow. • Daphne • Preventing and combating of violence against children, young people and women; protecting victims and at-risk groups • 1-2 years, €75k to €300k, 80%, 2 MS • Very competitive • 2012 call closed April; one final call remaining

18. Project example – Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service • 2010 call. • FAIR - Fire Awareness and Integration for Refugees • Improving fire safety and awareness of all refugees • Integration activities, including work placements in MF+RS’s Community Safety Department • Increase accessibility of services to refugees • Improve suitability of housing offered to refugees • Ensuring a reasonable physical standard of housing offered by private landlords • Providing fire safety equipment to refugee occupiers • Reducing barriers to communication between refugee, community and statutory organisations • ₤70k grant; ₤141k overall project size

19. Europe for Citizens • EUR 215m 07-13 • Town twinning (networks, citizens’ meetings), citizen participation in the EU, civil society organisations’ operating grants and projects, communicating Europe, European remembrance projects • EUR 5k-150k, flat rates or % of actuals (60-80%) • Various deadlines each year depending on strand

20. Public Health Programme • €321.5 m 2007-13 • 3 strands: health security, health promotion, health information • 60% grant, €500k-1.5m per project, minimum 3 MSs • Different funding mechanisms: • Projects, joint actions, tenders, conferences • Next call: 1st qr 2013

21. Difficult or finished funds • Seventh Framework Programme for R&D • Security, socio-economic sciences • 2013 calls summer 2012 • PROGRESS • 1. Employment, 2. social inclusion and protection, 3. working conditions, 4. non-discrimination, 5. gender equality • 2012 no open calls for 3-5, limited for 1-2. 2013 WP March 2013? • Finished: Interregs

22. Finding partners • ERLAI • ENSA • 200+ regional Brussels offices, sectoral representations • UKREP

23. MBO and other support • Information service • Promoting awareness: inputing to existing network meetings; running bespoke funding seminars • Liaison with secretariats, EC • Second opinion on bids • Attending EU events and network meetings • MBO most TN funds; NWHBO Public Health Programme specialism • NW European Co-operation Group

24. 2014-2020 – general • EC proposal (June 2011) • Current spend 1% of EU GNI. Next MFF 5-11% higher • Overall budget EUR 1,025 bn across 5 headlines • Many existing funds continued, but some merged or adapted • All funding areas covered today ↑ • Asylum and migration funds merged; youth and education funds merged – no loss of priorities or budget • Continuity plus new possibilities • Next steps – overall budget and individual instruments

25. 2014-2020 – general • Results, conditionality (cohesion, agriculture), simplification • More innovative financial instruments. Rationalising and rolling out current “experimental” instruments. • More resources to infrastructure, R&I, education and culture, environmental protection and climate change, external policy • More executive agencies and delegated funding to MSs • Certain funds grouped together under common frameworks: R&I; cohesion, rural and fisheries

26. 2014-2020: sectors • Regional policy (EUR 376 bn)… • Common Strategic Framework for Research and Innovation: FP and innovation part of CIP merged. EUR 80bn. Boosting the science base, tackling societal challenges, creating industrial leadership and boosting competitiveness. • Agriculture. Now spread across 5 headlines of MFF budget. 2 pillar CP structure maintained. Direct payments (EUR 281.8 bn): 30% conditional on “greening”; some convergence of payment levels per hectare across MSs; capping direct payments for large holdings. Rural development (EUR 89.9bn): now to be in Common Strategic Frameworks. Separate budgets for food safety, food support for deprived populations, agriculture sector crises. Share of R&I and EGF budgets. • Education Europe: Lifelong Learning and Youth in Action merged. LEONARDO element boosted. EUR 15.2 bn.

27. 2014-2020: sectors • Migration and Asylum Fund (EUR 3.4 bn): merges ERF, Integration Fund and Return Fund. Internal Security Fund (EUR 4.1 bn): merges home affairs programmes (crime prevention, terrorism, Daphne?). More delegation of funds to MSs; multi-annual programming; external dimension. • Climate action and the environment: x-cutting all funds (especially CEF, cohesion, R&I, CAP direct payments); dedicated fund. LIFE+: biodiversity, environment and governance strands; greater climate action emphasis (mitigation, adaptation, governance and awareness). New “integrated” projects (dovetailed with other funds) as well as classic projects. EUR 800m. • Integrated Policy for Employment, Social Policy and Inclusion. Successor to PROGRESS: employment, social protection, social inclusion, fighting poverty, working conditions – but bigger projects and multi-annual programming. EUR 850m. • Europe for Citizens. No real change in priorities. EUR 203m.

28. Adopting next budget • Council can ament, Parliament only assent • Negotiating box • Danish EU presidency working doc • Progressively filled in for June and December heads of state meeting • Many MSs calling for austerity; opposed views on detail • EP willing to refuse: post-90s competency growth not matched by budget • Revised EC proposal due – new GDP figs

29. Regional policy: transition regions • “Transition Regions”: €39bn • Less Developed Regions €163bn, More Developed €53bn • 75-90% GDP, sliding scale, safety net • Reference period 07-09: Merseyside 80.2%, Cumbria 89.47%, Lancashire 84.86%, GM 98.39%, Cheshire 117.1% • Visual aid • Budget • < € 30bn cut – transition stays • > € 50bn – it goes; plan B (greater GDP weighting for more developed regions?) needed • MBO lobbying: • To date: meetings with EC, key MEPs, UKREP • EP event week 24 Sept or 8 Oct; REGI chair, budget vice-chair, rapporteurs; 2 roundtables (analysis of challenges and interventions needed)

30. Regional policy: levels • Levels of programming: Common Strategic Framework, fund regulations ↓ Partnership agreement ↓ Operational programmes • Level of delivery/OPs: functional economic area (LEP), national, thematic, other, mix? • Multi-fund programmes and instruments, shared management authorities and/or monitoring committees across funds, multi-fund one-stop-shops and IT platforms • Macro-regions (Atlantic) • Interreg €12bn: 73% A, 20% B, 6% C. Thematic concentration for A and B. Geographic areas for B undecided.

31. Regional policy: themes • 11 Europe 2020 themes • ERDF: • Infrastructure, business services, support for businesses, innovation, ICT, research, energy, online services, education, health, social and research infrastructures, accessibility, quality of the environment • Some regional restrictions • Thematic concentration: 80% nationally on clean energy, innovation and SME competitiveness • ESF: • Employment and labour mobility; educaiton , skills and LLL; promoting social inclusion and combating poverty (20% minimum nationally)

32. Regional policy: other • Local authorities as critical partners • Urban: 5% ringfencing plus calls for innovative actions • Conditionality: ex-ante (in place before funds disbursed), performance indicators for release of additional funds, macro-economic (especially deficits and inbalances) • 5% mid-term performance reserve • ESF share: 25% less developed, 40% transition, 52% more developed • Co-financing: 85% less developed, 60% transition, 50% more developed • More financial instruments • Simplication: outputs and results (rather than spend) based; more flat rates, lump sums and standard scales

33. Regional policy and negotiating box • Regional policy one of least developed parts. Unknowns: • % of budget to each category of region • Whether transition will exist or how it will be defined • ESF share and cofinancing rate for each category of region • How much to Interreg and each of sub-strands (A,B and C) • Criteria for regional allocations within each category (indicators)

34. Regional policy: timetable • 2011: EC proposed budget and regulations for individual funds • Early 2012: EC released CSF, BIS consulted on CSF and future English partnership agreement • Ongoing till year end: MFF in Council • Ongoing and into 2013: individual regulations in EP and Council (EP 1st reading REGI July, plenary Sept?) • Early 2013: draft English partnership agreement and formal BIS consultation

35. .?james.sharples@merseyside-europe.orgwww.merseyside-europe.org.?james.sharples@merseyside-europe.orgwww.merseyside-europe.org