Are EU structural funds a zero-sum game where the development of one region takes place at the expense of another? EuroparlTV investigates in France and Belgium.

Reporter: Much-needed help or an unfair advantage?

Are European structural funds  a boon to damaged regions

or unfair competition  for prosperous regions?

EuroparlTV investigated  in France and Belgium.

We're in Ghlin in Wallonia  in the South of Belgium.

This is the European region  where the Swedish multinational H&M

decided to set up its new logistics unit.

It's the support base that supplies  all the shops in the South of Europe.

We couldn't get in.  The company refused us entry.

The installation was supported  by the Belgian authorities.

They played all their trump cards  to attract the Swedish giant.

14.7 million euros of public aid  were promised,

of which 5 million came  from structural funds.

At stake was the creation of over 300 jobs  in an economically damaged area.

We're in the industrial zone  of Le Bourget.

The Swedish giant  has a logistics unit here too.

But since the Belgian site opened  the workers have been worried.

They fear that it's a relocation in disguise.

The opening of Ghlin, the new  H&M logistics centre in Belgium,

has had an enormous impact  on our activity in Le Bourget.

70% of the shops that we used to  deal with here in Le Bourget

are now, for the most part,  handled by Ghlin.

I've been a stock controller  for seven years on this site.

and we're wondering what  the future of our site will be.

Starting over a year ago, the staff  at this logistics centre has been reduced.

They say that over 120 full-time  equivalent jobs have been cut

between 2010 and 2011.  They've gone from 350 to 234 staff.

Gémina was among the first  to be employed

Our activity has been split,  we’ve lost 70% of the activity,

so what’s the interest  in using the entire site?

And even on the single floor we're using  they're squeezing people.

Even on the single floor we're using  they're closing units.

In 2010, the Le Bourget site  supplied clothing

to nearly 145 shops across France,  compared to 66 currently.

In part, EU funds allowed the installation  of H&M's logistics base in Belgium.

The European taxpayer  has already spent over 2 million euros

on the construction  of the Belgian logistics centre.

on the pretext of helping and developing  a part of Europe that is 'damaged',

they're going to damage another place  that's also in Europe.

What I mind is the way these funds  are being used.

Back to Belgium, where the unions  make a positive assessment.

The arrival of a company like H&M  can only be a good thing.

The company absorbs  mostly young people.

Our journey ends at the town hall of  Mons, a city in the province of Hainaut.

In the past five years the province has  received over 638 million euros in EU aid.

it employs 300-400 unskilled workers  in an area which is in difficulty.

The structural funds provide leverage  in attracting investors, foreign or local,

in stimulating investments  that create jobs.

So we do have a competitive advantage  over other regions

which are in the lead  in terms of economic development.

It makes sense, that's what they are for.

The companies which have  benefited from structural funds

cannot leave the region  within three years

or they must pay back  the received aid.