Appointing the delegation
All members of the Danish delegation are elected politicians for either a municipality or a region. The appointment of members and alternate members to the European Committee of Regions is part of the constitutional process in the two representative associations – Danish Regions and Local Government Denmark, following the elections for local and regional councils. The elections take place every fourth year in November, next election being in November 2021.
Formally, the two associations propose candidates for the CoR positions to the Foreign Ministry, which in turn forwards the proposals the European Council for final approval.
The Danish delegation is therefore representative to the Danish sub-national governments, with a balance reflecting the outcome of the latest local and regional elections.
Organization and promoting policy interest
The full members of the Danish delegation allocate between themselves the seats in each of the commissions of the European Committee of Regions. For some commissions a system of permanent alternates is in place.
Prior to Plenary sessions in the European Committee of Regions, the Danish delegation will meet to discuss relevant issues on the agenda and to keep the delegation informed of what is happening in political groups and commissions having Danish participants. Delegation meetings also serve to discuss the plenary agenda and coordinate a coherent Danish position on issues which are relevant for the interest of the regions and municipalities in Denmark.
The Danish delegation is assisted by the associations of Danish Regions and Local Government Denmark, mainly from their Brussels offices. The two secretariats coordinates briefings for members attending meetings; gives feedback to local and regional authorities on CoR developments and opinions and promotes the work of the delegation both within Denmark and throughout the EU. At the same time the Danish delegation is providing information and expertise to CoR by sharing knowledge from the local and regional authorities in Denmark and their representative national associations. On a daily basis the two secretariats coordinate and work as one single unit to provide the members of the Danish Delegation with a coherent response to the issues of importance to the local and regional interest in Denmark.