On 11 September 2020, the European Committee of the Regions' Bureau approved the proposal by the SEDEC commission to draft an own-initiative opinion on the Restart of Cultural and Creative Sectors. The SEDEC commission will adopt the draft opinion on the Restart of Cultural and Creative Sectors, with Giuseppe VARACALLI (IT/Renew Europe) as rapporteur, at its meeting on 25 November 2020. 

The German Presidency has requested that the European Committee of the Regions provides insight into how cohesion policy could help overcoming the economic crisis resulting from the ongoing pandemic, and promote growth through innovation and economic change. By means of this written consultation, the CoR rapporteur for this opinion, Mr Michiel Rijsberman, would like to consult relevant stakeholders and gather their input in order to draft the opinion.  

​The topic of public transport is extremely important for local and regional authorities (LRAs) as it is within their core competencies to provide public service to their citizens. Therefore, the European Committee of the Regions has decided to issue an own-initiative opinion on the "Challenges for public transport in metropolitan regions", to be drafted by Adam STRUZIK (PL/EPP), Marshal of the Mazovian Voivodeship. 

Around 70% of EU policies are implemented at the local and regional level. At the same time, EU policies affect people's daily lives in ways that policy makers cannot always foresee. This, combined with the lack of information on the EU and outright disinformation campaigns sometimes leads to a perception of the EU as distant from the people.  

The European Committee of the Regions is currently drafting an opinion on the Farm to Fork Strategy to bring forward a local and regional dimension. The rapporteur, Guido Milana (PES/IT), would like to have your views on this topic. 

The European Commission Communication "A Strong Social Europe for Just Transitions", adopted in January 2020, seeks to launch a broad debate about the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights so far. At the same time, the Communication is a roadmap for key actions announced by the Commission in the course of 2020-2021. The Commission will elaborate an Action Plan in 2021 on the basis of stakeholder contributions by December 2020, expressing their views on the need for further new policy action, accompanied (or not) by legal initiatives at European level. 

On 5 March 2020 the European Commission presented its strategy for equality between women and men in Europe. The Strategy aims to achieve a gender-equal Europe where gender-based violence, sex discrimination and structural inequality between women and men are a thing of the past. The Strategy also notes that this year marks the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and also mentions the Sustainable Development Goals, SDG 5 in particular. The SEDEC Commission will adopt the draft opinion on A Union of Equality: Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, with Concepción Andreu Rodríguez (ES/PES) as rapporteur, at its meeting on 9 July 2020. 

The EU's Single Market was created over 25 years ago and has been a cornerstone of the EU's economic development ever since. It is considered one of the EU's greatest achievements and it is at the core of the EU's economic and political integration. 

REVISED - Europe has always been the home of industry. Throughout its history, it has proven its ability to lead change. Today, industry in Europe is faced with a need for a transition to sustainability and digitalisation, which increasingly have an impact on all policy areas. The communication COM(2020) 102 final, on A new industrial strategy for Europe, presented by the European Commission, addresses these challenges. The strategy aims to drive Europe's competitiveness and its strategic autonomy at a time of geopolitical instability and increasing global competition. 

The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) is drafting an Opinion on "The European Climate Pact". To discuss the topic of the opinion, the Rapporteur Rafał Kazimierz TRZASKOWSKI (PL/EPP), President of the capital city of Warsaw, and his expert would be happy to count on a wide range of contributions. 

​​​​Considering the current circumstances, the European Committee of the Regions' ENVE Commission would like to launch an online stakeholders' consultation aimed at feeding into the preparation of its upcoming opinion on the European Climate Law: establishing the framework for achieving climate neutrality which was published on the 4th of March 2020 by the European Commission (EC) as part of the European Green Deal. 

Considering the current circumstances, the European Committee of the Regions' ENVE Commission would like to launch an online stakeholders' consultation aimed at feeding into the preparation of its upcoming opinion on the new Circular Economy Action Plan. New deadline for contributions: 29 May 2020.