The renationalisation of European funds proposed in the MFF 2028-2034 would increase the economic gap between peripheral regions and the already wealthier European capital cities
The cohesion between EU regions is at risk. The EU Commission’s proposal for the 2028-2034 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) creates a new architecture for shared management built around the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs). But what the Commission fails to explain is that these plans would cut direct funding to European regions and, instead, recentralize the different programmes into one national plan per member state, with optional regional chapters.
The MFF proposal gives, in fact, full decision-making power to state capitals on how the money is distributed. Regions and local authorities lose any influence. If approved, this renationalisation plan would be a huge step backwards. It would widen the economic gap between peripheral regions and the already wealthier European capital cities. Renationalisation of European funds is a regression to a time when the EU was merely a union of states instead of a political project for all its citizens.
From the European Free Alliance, the European political party of regions, multi-level governance and self-determination, we have been working to make the voice of the European regions heard since we first learned about these plans. We want to back the Committee of the Regions in their complaints about this proposal, and we stand with the European regions that oppose the Commission’s idea. We call the European leaders to take action, reject the proposed MFF 2028-2034, and draft a new proposal that protects direct funding for EU’s regions.
Biased redistribution
When states are put in charge of managing European funding, their internal redistribution has proved to be biased. When comparing the outcomes of the EU Cohesion Funds – directly granted to the regions – and The EU Next Generation Funds – nationalised – the difference is clear. Regions aligned with the governing party benefit from greater financial allocation, while the regions opposed to the central government pay the price. This especially affects regions that are home to minorities, rural areas, stateless nations, and territories governed by regional or national minority parties.
The MFF proposal also favours the Commission’s priorities over the needs of the regions. Funds are being allocated to defence and border control at the expense of agriculture, fisheries, and territorial cohesion. It affects directly the productive sectors, social cohesion and territorial development. The interests of peripheral territories must not be sacrificed to those of Brussels. It is time to put the regions at the centre!
The EU has historically played an important role in mitigating territorial inequalities across the continent, and it should continue doing so during the financial framework 2028-2024. Regional programmes are the European projects that impact citizens’ lives the most. It’s one of the pillars of Europe’s construction and one of the main reasons why today many regions feel attached to this political project. We cannot go back to a Europe based on the states’ interests. The EU is much more. It is a project that involves and serves all European people: a Europe for all regions.