On May 3 and May 6, two letters co-signed by the Minister-President of Flanders, Jan Jambon, were sent to the Presidents of the European Commission, European Parliament, European Council and the Council of the EU and to the co-chairs of the Executive Board of the Conference on the Future of Europe. The letters were sent on behalf of the signatory governments of two groups of leading European regions with legislative powers, namely Regions for EU Recovery and RLEG.
The letters include a request for greater involvement of regions with legislative powers in the Conference. Furthermore, they underline the need to ensure adequate representation of all levels of government in the EU, moreover regions with legislative powers, in policy-making and implementation process. "There is no European Union without regions. It is clear that there must be meaningful participation of regions with legislative powers in the Conference for the Future of Europe to ensure that all levels of government are represented in shaping the future of our Union," one of the letters says.
On May 7, RLEG also organized its first public event on the occasion of the letter. The event was chaired by the President of the Basque Government, Mr. Iñigo Urkullu Renteria, and attended by the guest-of-honour, former MEP Alain Lamassoure. The event included interventions from some of the signatories of the letter. In total, the letter was signed by fourteen regions: Aaland Island, Azores, Balearic Islands, Basque Country, Carinthia, Catalonia, Flanders, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Tyrol, Upper Austria, Region of Valencia, Vorarlberg and Corsica as observer.
During his intervention, Minister-President Jambon stressed the importance of strengthening the position of regions in the European Union and therefore the involvement of regions in the Conference – in particular through representation in the governing bodies of the Conference.
