Στοιχεία της γνωμοδότησης 

Contribute to the debate on the effective implementation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights by the European Union and propose what the CoR's role and that of local and regional authorities could be in this context.

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS



- commends the strengthening of fundamental rights in the EU. Although Europe has a solid legal framework as regards human rights, there are deficiencies in the way rights are guaranteed in practice;

- supports the three main strands of the Commission's strategy, but also notes that the strategy mainly addresses the institutions and more specifically what the Commission should and must do. The Committee advocates taking a more strategic approach to implementing the Charter, which will require the involvement of all authorities, including at local and regional level;

- is keen to help create "a culture of multilevel promotion and protection of rights", which also means raising public awareness of fundamental rights and drawing the attention of officials of the European Union, the Member States and the regional and local authorities to the force of the Charter of Fundamental Rights as directly applicable law;

- thinks that the proposed strategy should be made clearer with respect to the processes for preparatory consultations on proposed legislation. These processes must be clarified so that impact assessments are accurate and useful. It is important in terms of strengthening democracy in the EU that different stakeholders, including local and regional authorities, be given the possibility to express their views.