Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate for Cohesion and Reforms, is heard by the Committee on Regional Development (REGI) in association with the Committee on Budgets (BUDG) and the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) of the European Parliament in Brussels to test her general competences, European commitment and specific expertise related to her portfolio. Statements by Constanze KREHL (S&D, DE), Ondřej KNOTEK (RE, CZ), Simone SCHMIEDTBAUER (EPP, AT) and Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate for Cohesion and Reforms.

Brussels

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Committee on Budgets

Committee on Regional Development

KREHL, Constanze (S&D, DE)

FERREIRA, Elisa (S&D, PT, EC)

hearing of Commissioners

KNOTEK, Ondřej (Renew, CZ)

SCHMIEDTBAUER, Simone (EPP, AT)

2019 Commissioners' hearings (T)

hearing of Elisa FERREIRA 2019 (T)

Hearing of Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate, Cohesion and Reforms: extracts from the hearing

SOUNDBITE (English), Constanze KREHL (S&amp;D, DE), Where do you see the role of cohesion policy within the new European Green Deal?

SOUNDBITE (English), Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate, Cohesion and Reforms, We have got a compromise in relation to the regional funds, that 30% of the allocations and the payments of the regional funds in the future period 2021-2027 will be allocated to climate-compatible projects and the threshold is higher is 37% for the Commission fund, given that these two funds represent 25% of the European budget.

SOUNDBITE (English), Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate, Cohesion and Reforms, Having already the target for 2030, and the target for 2050, calls for huge massive investment, these massive investments have to touch not only the cohesion policy, that is for sure. We have the thresholds for different types of regions asking for minimum engagement that goes from 30% to 60% according to the level of the regions and the countries, level of development. Then you have to work with the Innovation Fund, the ETS, with Horizon Europe, with re-deployment of the existing instruments and I am thinking of Invest EU, of the globalisation and adjustment funds, the EIB, we have to combined all these instruments to make leap in this path towards the objectives, but we cannot full ourselves that would be extremely costly, and extremely difficult technically.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ond&#345;ej KNOTEK (RE, CZ), If there is any possibility to have a guarantee of kind of commitment that you will try to achieve the financing of this [Just transition] fund without putting additional pressure on the cohesion budget.

SOUNDBITE (English), Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate, Cohesion and Reforms, I would prefer to have here a complementary origin to the Commission proposal that could bring fresh money but I cannot make not any promise at this stage because we are still working first of all on the overall framework and then on how we can organise the financing of this fund , but it will exists and I will take a particular care in relation these regions very dependent on industry, very dependent on coal and on energy consumption.

SOUNDBITE (German), Simone SCHMIEDTBAUER (EPP, AT), Your partner, is responsible of allocating regional funds in Portugal, do you think this could be a conflict of interest?

SOUNDBITE (English), Elisa FERREIRA, Commissioner-designate, Cohesion and Reforms, I will abstain from any participation in decisions which concern the implementation of Union funds under my responsibility which could directly or indirectly impact to the personal interest of my husband as president of this institution. If there is any personal aspect I will completely abstain which means that I consider myself impeded to decide and it will be up to the Commission to decide, or to the President-elect to decide.