The Committee of the Regions elects its first women president

"The institutional debate is over. It’s time to bring the Treaty of Lisbon to life. We will no longer just ask that regional and local authorities are taken into consideration. We will not just be the yes-man. We will enter the political debate with substantial proposals and we will not – if it is required - shy away from political controversy," she said in her speech.

In her speech, the President of the Piedmont Region outlined the priorities of her two-and–a-half year mandate, such as:

 the fight against climate change,

 the launch of an overhauled Lisbon strategy,

 the improvement of Europe’s cohesion policynationalisation

 the integration of regional and local interests in the debate on the EU’s financial perspective

 the successful implementation of the new legal instrument of the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC)

 the development of a European strategy for services of general interest respecting local and regional competences

The new CoR President also announced that the institution would assume its responsibility in the concrete implementation of the citizens’ initiative created by the Lisbon Treaty. "Drawing from their vast experience regarding citizens’ initiatives in our member states, regions and cities will play a role in initiating, federating and carrying forward European citizens’ initiatives. This will make Europe more transparent, democratic and diverse."

Ramón Luis Valcárcel Siso (ES/PPE), President of the Spanish region of Murcia, has been elected as the First Vice-President of the Committee of the Regions. He will hold this office until 2012 when he will, according to an agreement between the CoR’s PES and the EPP Groups, take over the presidency from Mercedes Bresso.  Also for the first time, two regional presidents will hold the presidency in succession. Since the CoR represents both local and regional authorities, until now a regional authority and a local authority have always held the presidency in turns.

Regional elections will be held in Italy in late March and there is the possibility Bresso will not be relected. What will happen if Bresso is not re-elected president of her region? It will be up to the Socialist group to decide.

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