Delegácia Európskeho výboru regiónov (VR) na Konferenciu o budúcnosti Európy sa dnes stretla, aby pripravila svoj príspevok na ustanovujúce plenárne zasadnutie Konferencie o budúcnosti Európy , ktoré sa uskutoční 19. júna v Štrasburgu. Delegáti by chceli využiť príležitosť, ktorú konferencia ponúka, na posilnenie demokratického rozmeru Európskej únie a obnovenie dôvery občanov v európsky projekt. VR ako reprezentatívny orgán EÚ na úrovni verejnej správy, ktorá je najbližšie k občanom, je odhodlaný priniesť na konferenciu hlasy miestnych a regionálnych samospráv.

The Union of Equality builds on local communities' work on the ground: this is the key message that members of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) stressed today in a debate with European Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli. Local and regional politicians from across Europe welcomed the inclusion of an equality perspective into all EU policies, legislation and funding programmes.

António Costa, Prime Minister of Portugal, and European Parliament President, David Sassoli, will attend on 5 May the CoR Plenary session to discuss social Europe and the upcoming Conference on the future of Europe. On 6 May regional and local leaders will discuss with Commissioner Helena Dalli how to strengthen a Europe of equality. On 7 May a debate on the recovery in the hotel and catering sector will take place with Jens Zimmer Christensen, President of the HOTREC Association, the umbrella association of hotels, restaurants and cafés in Europe. On 7 May Herman Van Rompuy, former President of the European Council, will discuss with regional and local authorities the CoR contribution to the Conference on the Future of Europe, in his capacity as chairman of the High-Level Group on European Democracy recently created by the CoR.

Local and regional decision-makers, who gathered virtually together for the 7th meeting of the European Committee of the Regions' SEDEC Commission on 22 April, have backed the European Parliament's resolution that declares the entire EU a LGBTIQ Freedom Zone. They called the European Commission to ensure that the fundamental values of the European Union are observed and that no municipality, region or state introduces systemic discriminatory mechanisms, such as "LGBT-free zones" or resolutions "against LGBT ideology" like those adopted by certain local and regional authorities in Poland.